ArticleInternational journal of environmental research and public health2022
Deeply in Plasticenta: Presence of Microplastics in the Intracellular Compartment of Human Placentas.
Article in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
55 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 165 citations in OpenAlex.
- Micro- and nanoplastics in human biological materials: a systematic review of detection methods and methodological challenges.Archives of toxicology · 2026Pooled it
- Micro and Nanoplastics and Obstetric Outcomes in Humans and Animals: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Pooled it
- Impact of microplastics on female reproductive health: insights from animal and human experimental studies: a systematic review.Archives of gynecology and obstetrics · 2025Pooled it
- Article
- Micro- and nanoplastics in pediatric health: from placental transfer to neurodevelopmental outcomes.Pediatric research · 2026Review
- Article
- Review
- Micro and nanoplastic inhalation during gestation disrupts placentation in the Sprague-Dawley rat.Research square · 2026Article
- Microplastics in Female Reproductive and Pregnancy Organs: A Systematic Review.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Health Risks of Prenatal and Early-Life Microplastics Exposure: A Comprehensive Review.Environment & health (Washington, D.C.) · 2026Review
- First Evidence of Microplastic Ingestion by an Arboreal Primate.EcoHealth · 2026Article
- Polystyrene microplastics internalization by term placental chorionic villi explants.Placenta · 2026Review
- Microplastics amplify the pro-inflammatory response to fungal mycelial fragments and spores in neutrophil-like cells.Frontiers in toxicology · 2026Article
- Microplastics and child health: A scoping review of prenatal and early-life exposure routes and potential health risks.Toxicology reports · 2025Review
- Plastic Pollution and Child Health: A Narrative Review of Micro- and Nanoplastics, Additives, and Developmental Risks.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- Gestational exposure to micro and nanoplastics differentially impacts cardiac development and function in male and female rats throughout the lifespan.Toxicology and applied pharmacology · 2025Article
- The epithelial barrier theory proposes a comprehensive explanation for the origins of allergic and other chronic noncommunicable diseases.FEBS letters · 2025Review
- Nano- and Microplastics in the Brain: An Emerging Threat to Neural Health.Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Health Risks from Microplastics in Intravenous Infusions: Evidence from Italy, Spain, and Ecuador.Toxics · 2025Article
- Unveiling the effects of micro and nano plastics in embryonic development.Toxicology reports · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
18 authors at 7 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) are defined as plastic particles smaller than 5 mm. They have been found almost everywhere they have been searched for and recent discoveries have also demonstrated their presence in human placenta, blood, meconium, and breastmilk, but their location and toxicity to humans have not been reported to date. The aim of this study was twofold: 1. To locate MPs within the intra/extracellular compartment in human placenta. 2. To understand whether their presence and location are associated with possible structural changes of cell organelles. Using variable pressure scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, MPs have been localized in ten human placentas. In this study, we demonstrated for the first time the presence and localization in the cellular compartment of fragments compatible with MPs in the human placenta and we hypothesized a possible correlation between their presence and important ultrastructural alterations of some intracytoplasmic organelles (mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum). These alterations have never been reported in normal healthy term pregnancies until today. They could be the result of a prolonged attempt to remove and destroy the plastic particles inside the placental tissue. The presence of virtually indestructible particles in term human placenta could contribute to the activation of pathological traits, such as oxidative stress, apoptosis, and inflammation, characteristic of metabolic disorders underlying obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome and partially accounting for the recent epidemic of non-communicable diseases.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.