ArticlePloS one2023
Correlation between cellular uptake and cytotoxicity of polystyrene micro/nanoplastics in HeLa cells: A size-dependent matter.
Article in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 18 papers, 1 of them a synthesis 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
18 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Health impacts of micro- and nanoplastics in humans: systematic review of in vivo evidence.Environmental health : a global access science source · 2026Pooled it
- Microplastic-Mediated Gene Expression Alterations and Cancer Risk: Insights from Toxicogenomic Analysis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Bacteria-nanoplastic interactions: mechanisms, ecological consequences, and advances in biodegradation technologies.Archives of microbiology · 2026Review
- Bioplastics Toxicity upon Ingestion: A Critical Review of Biotransformation and Gastrointestinal Effects.Polymers · 2026Review
- Biomimetic Protein Materials for Adjuvant-Free Dermal Penetration.ACS materials letters · 2026Article
- Delivery of monoclonal antibodies to the brain: the impact of nanocarrier structure.Drug delivery and translational research · 2026Article
- Microplastic induced cascades of multiple cell death pathways: inflammation, immune imbalance, and cancer susceptibility.Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- Polystyrene Micro- and Nanoplastic Exposure Triggers an Activation and Stress Response in Human Astrocytes.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms of Micro- and Nanoplastics Driving Adverse Human Health Effects.Toxics · 2025Review
- Biological Modulation of Autophagy by Nanoplastics: A Current Overview.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Assessing the Impact of Nanoplastics in Biological Systems: Systematic Review of In Vitro Animal Studies.Journal of xenobiotics · 2025Review
- Interaction of Polystyrene Nanoplastic with Lipid Membranes.The journal of physical chemistry. B · 2025Article
- Article
- Polystyrene nanoplastics induce oxidative stress inFrontiers in immunology · 2025Article
- Developing a feasible fast-track testing method for developmental neurotoxicity studies: alternative model for risk assessment of micro- and nanoplastics.Frontiers in toxicology · 2025Review
- Article
- Iron Oxide Nanoparticles: Selectively Targeting Melanoma Cells In Vitro by Inducing DNA Damage via H2AX Phosphorylation and Hindering Proliferation through ERK Dephosphorylation.Pharmaceutics · 2024Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The cytotoxicity of micro/nanoplastics (MNPs) is known to be strongly influenced by particle size, but the mechanism is not clear so far. We reported the ability of polystyrene MNPs to be internalized by HeLa cells could be a reason for the size dependent cytotoxicity of MNPs. We found that small MNPs (10 nm and 15 nm in radius) could be efficiently internalized by HeLa cells, MNPs of 25 nm in radius could be slightly internalized by the cells, and larger MNPs could not enter the cells at all. We showed that only MNPs, which could be internalized by cells, had a toxic effect on cell activity in a dose-dependent manner. In contrast, MNPs, which could not be internalized by cells, showed no cytotoxicity even if at extremely high concentrations. We attributed the correlation between the size-dependent uptake of MNPs and the size-dependent cytotoxicity of MNPs to the enhanced reactive oxygen species (ROS) level and abnormal gene expression. Our study pointed out that cellular uptake is one of the most fundamental mechanisms for the cytotoxicity of MNPs.
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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.