{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,30]],"date-time":"2026-09-30T03:06:30Z","timestamp":1790737590393,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":46,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,5,11]],"date-time":"2022-05-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1652227200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nanomaterials"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Environmental exposure to microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) is an increasing concern from human health perspectives. Little information on the genotoxic and cytotoxic potential of NP particles in human cells is available. We aimed to assess the cytotoxic and genotoxic potential of polystyrene nanoplastics (PSNPs) at different concentrations (2000\u03bcg\/mL, 1000\u03bcg\/mL, and 500\u03bcg\/mL) by using chromosomal aberration (CA) and cytokinesis-block micronucleus assays (CBMN) on human peripheral lymphocytes. Dose-dependent hemolytic activity and cell viability were observed against the PSNPs exposure. Increased chromosomal aberrations, such as chromosomal breaks and dicentric chromosomes, and an increase in nucleoplasmic bridge (NBP) formation and nuclear budding (NBUD) were observed. The frequency of mitotic index (MI) decreased significantly in the PSNP-exposed groups from lower to higher concentrations. A significant increase in micronuclei (MN) formation and cytostasis% and a dose-dependent reduction in nuclear division index (NDI) in PSNP-exposed groups indicated oxidative stress-mediated cytotoxicity, DNA damage, and genomic instabilities due to PSNP exposure in human lymphocyte cells. This study highlights the importance of understanding the toxic mechanisms and associated chronic and acute health effects on humans due to exposure to this pervasive environmental pollutant.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nano12101632","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,5,12]],"date-time":"2022-05-12T05:10:32Z","timestamp":1652332232000},"page":"1632","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":68,"title":["The Biological Effects of Polystyrene Nanoplastics on Human Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2749-4114","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Devojit Kumar","family":"Sarma","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"ICMR\u2014National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal Bypass Road, Bhouri, Bhopal 462030, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ruchi","family":"Dubey","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biotechnology, Barkatullah University, Bhopal 462026, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8850-4577","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ravindra M.","family":"Samarth","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Research, ICMR\u2014Bhopal Memorial Hospital & Research Centre, Bhopal 462038, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Swasti","family":"Shubham","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ICMR\u2014National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal Bypass Road, Bhouri, Bhopal 462030, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4839-5473","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Pritom","family":"Chowdhury","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biotechnology, Tocklai Tea Research Institute, Jorhat 785008, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6088-4133","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Manoj","family":"Kumawat","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ICMR\u2014National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal Bypass Road, Bhouri, Bhopal 462030, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Vinod","family":"Verma","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Stem Cell Research Centre, Department of Hematology, Sanjay Gandhi Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow 226014, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4676-9603","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rajnarayan R.","family":"Tiwari","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ICMR\u2014National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal Bypass Road, Bhouri, Bhopal 462030, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2040-8631","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Manoj","family":"Kumar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ICMR\u2014National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal Bypass Road, Bhouri, Bhopal 462030, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,5,11]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e1700782","DOI":"10.1126\/sciadv.1700782","article-title":"Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made","volume":"3","author":"Geyer","year":"2017","journal-title":"Sci. Adv."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13","DOI":"10.1016\/B978-0-12-817880-5.00002-5","article-title":"Production, use, and fate of synthetic polymers","volume":"Volume 1","author":"Geyer","year":"2020","journal-title":"Plastic Waste and Recycling"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"103239","DOI":"10.1016\/j.etap.2019.103239","article-title":"Impacts of plastic products used in daily life on the environment and human health: What is known?","volume":"72","author":"Rodrigues","year":"2019","journal-title":"Environ. Toxicol. Pharmacol."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Manzoor, J., Sharma, M., Sofi, I.R., and Dar, A.A. (2020). Plastic waste environmental and human health impacts. Handbook of Research on Environmental and Human Health Impacts of Plastic Pollution, IGI Global.","DOI":"10.4018\/978-1-5225-9452-9.ch002"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"61","DOI":"10.1126\/science.abg5433","article-title":"The global threat from plastic pollution","volume":"373","author":"MacLeod","year":"2021","journal-title":"Science"},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Yee, M.S., Hii, L.W., Looi, C.K., Lim, W.M., Wong, S.F., Kok, Y.Y., Tan, B.K., Wong, C.Y., and Leong, C.O. (2021). Impact of Microplastics and Nanoplastics on Human Health. Nanomaterials, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/nano11020496"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1186\/s43591-021-00011-1","article-title":"Paradigms to assess the human health risks of nano-and microplastics","volume":"1","author":"Noventa","year":"2021","journal-title":"Microplastics Nanoplastics"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"339","DOI":"10.1038\/s41561-019-0335-5","article-title":"Atmospheric transport and deposition of microplastics in a remote mountain catchment","volume":"12","author":"Allen","year":"2019","journal-title":"Nat. Geosci."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"114297","DOI":"10.1016\/j.envpol.2020.114297","article-title":"Polystyrene nanoparticles: Sources, occurrence in the environment, distribution in tissues, accumulation and toxicity to various organisms","volume":"262","author":"Kik","year":"2020","journal-title":"Environ. Pollut."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"143872","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2020.143872","article-title":"Potential human health risks due to environmental exposure to microplastics and knowledge gaps: A scoping review","volume":"757","author":"Rahman","year":"2021","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Facciola, A., Visalli, G., Pruiti Ciarello, M., and Di Pietro, A. (2021). Newly Emerging Airborne Pollutants: Current Knowledge of Health Impact of Micro and Nanoplastics. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 18.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph18062997"},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"121575","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jhazmat.2019.121575","article-title":"Polystyrene microplastic particles: In vitro pulmonary toxicity assessment","volume":"385","author":"Dong","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Hazard. Mater."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"8860","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-019-45139-6","article-title":"Assessment on interactive prospectives of nanoplastics with plasma proteins and the toxicological impacts of virgin, coronated and environmentally released-nanoplastics","volume":"9","author":"Gopinath","year":"2019","journal-title":"Sci Rep."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"141937","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2020.141937","article-title":"Toxicity of polystyrene nanoplastics in Ctenopharyngodon idella juveniles: A genotoxic, mutagenic and cytotoxic perspective","volume":"752","author":"Guimaraes","year":"2021","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3186","DOI":"10.1039\/D1EN00688F","article-title":"Do polystyrene nanoplastics aggravate the toxicity of single contaminants (okadaic acid)? Using AGS cells as a biological model","volume":"8","author":"Lin","year":"2021","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Nano"},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Vecchiotti, G., Colafarina, S., Aloisi, M., Zarivi, O., Di Carlo, P., and Poma, A. (2021). Genotoxicity and oxidative stress induction by polystyrene nanoparticles in the colorectal cancer cell line HCT116. PLoS ONE, 16.","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0255120"},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Poma, A., Vecchiotti, G., Colafarina, S., Zarivi, O., Aloisi, M., Arrizza, L., Chichiricco, G., and Di Carlo, P. (2019). In Vitro Genotoxicity of Polystyrene Nanoparticles on the Human Fibroblast Hs27 Cell Line. Nanomaterials, 9.","DOI":"10.3390\/nano9091299"},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3431","DOI":"10.1039\/D0EN00748J","article-title":"Genotoxic and immunomodulatory effects in human white blood cells after ex vivo exposure to polystyrene nanoplastics","volume":"7","author":"Ballesteros","year":"2020","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Nano"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"124","DOI":"10.1016\/j.devcel.2017.09.016","article-title":"The Origin of Animal Multicellularity and Cell Differentiation","volume":"43","author":"Brunet","year":"2017","journal-title":"Dev. Cell"},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"129805","DOI":"10.1016\/j.chemosphere.2021.129805","article-title":"Genotoxic and cytotoxic effects of polyethylene microplastics on human peripheral blood lymphocytes","volume":"272","year":"2021","journal-title":"Chemosphere"},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"138180","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2020.138180","article-title":"Cytotoxic effects of polystyrene nanoplastics with different surface functionalization on human HepG2 cells","volume":"723","author":"He","year":"2020","journal-title":"Sci. Total. Environ."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"112041","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ecoenv.2021.112041","article-title":"Combined cytotoxicity of polystyrene nanoplastics and phthalate esters on human lung epithelial A549 cells and its mechanism","volume":"213","author":"Shi","year":"2021","journal-title":"Ecotoxicol. Environ. Saf."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"8849","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.est.6b01441","article-title":"Microplastic Size-Dependent Toxicity, Oxidative Stress Induction, and p-JNK and p-p38 Activation in the Monogonont Rotifer (Brachionus koreanus)","volume":"50","author":"Jeong","year":"2016","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Technol."},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"7391","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-020-64464-9","article-title":"Potential toxicity of polystyrene microplastic particles","volume":"10","author":"Hwang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Sci. Rep."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Yong, C.Q.Y., Valiyaveetill, S., and Tang, B.L. (2020). Toxicity of Microplastics and Nanoplastics in Mammalian Systems. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 17.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph17051509"},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1817","DOI":"10.1007\/s00204-019-02478-7","article-title":"Uptake and effects of orally ingested polystyrene microplastic particles in vitro and in vivo","volume":"93","author":"Stock","year":"2019","journal-title":"Arch. Toxicol."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Shi, X., Huang, R., Wang, X., Tang, C., Hu, C., and Wang, F. (2022, February 10). Cytotoxicity and Genotoxicity of Polystyrene Microplastics with Different Size and Surface Modification in A549 Human Lung Cells. Available online: https:\/\/papers.ssrn.com\/sol3\/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3935593.","DOI":"10.2139\/ssrn.3935593"},{"key":"ref_28","unstructured":"OECD (2015). Guidance Document on Revisions to OECD Genetic Toxicology Test Guidelines, OECD. OECD Workgroup of National Coordinators for Test 42 Guidelines (WNT)."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e323","DOI":"10.21769\/BioProtoc.323","article-title":"Isolation of human PBMCs","volume":"3","author":"Panda","year":"2013","journal-title":"Bio-Protocol"},{"key":"ref_30","first-page":"e2017","article-title":"Human T lymphocyte isolation, culture and analysis of migration in vitro","volume":"40","author":"Lefort","year":"2010","journal-title":"J. Vis. Exp. JoVE"},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"A3 B 1","DOI":"10.1002\/0471142735.ima03bs111","article-title":"Trypan Blue Exclusion Test of Cell Viability","volume":"111","author":"Strober","year":"2015","journal-title":"Curr. Protoc. Immunol."},{"key":"ref_32","first-page":"e50166","article-title":"Ex vivo red blood cell hemolysis assay for the evaluation of pH-responsive endosomolytic agents for cytosolic delivery of biomacromolecular drugs","volume":"73","author":"Evans","year":"2013","journal-title":"J. Vis. Exp. JoVE"},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1084","DOI":"10.1038\/nprot.2007.77","article-title":"Cytokinesis-block micronucleus cytome assay","volume":"2","author":"Fenech","year":"2007","journal-title":"Nat. Protoc."},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"28","DOI":"10.4103\/jrcr.jrcr_1_18","article-title":"Evaluation of cyclophosphamide-induced genotoxicity and cytotoxicity in cultured human lymphocytes","volume":"9","author":"Samarth","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. Radiat. Cancer Res."},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1016\/j.mrgentox.2008.06.003","article-title":"Comparison of different methods for an accurate assessment of cytotoxicity in the in vitro micronucleus test. I. Theoretical aspects","volume":"655","author":"Lorge","year":"2008","journal-title":"Mutat. Res."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"117","DOI":"10.1002\/em.20372","article-title":"An evaluation of the mode of action framework for mutagenic carcinogens case study: Cyclophosphamide","volume":"49","author":"McCarroll","year":"2008","journal-title":"Environ. Mol. Mutagenesis"},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"19","DOI":"10.1007\/s12013-015-0705-6","article-title":"Polystyrene Nanoparticles Activate Erythrocyte Aggregation and Adhesion to Endothelial Cells","volume":"74","author":"Barshtein","year":"2016","journal-title":"Cell Biochem. Biophys."},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"133794","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2019.133794","article-title":"Internalization and toxicity: A preliminary study of effects of nanoplastic particles on human lung epithelial cell","volume":"694","author":"Xu","year":"2019","journal-title":"Sci. Total. Environ."},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"495","DOI":"10.1002\/tox.22885","article-title":"Effects of polystyrene microbeads on cytotoxicity and transcriptomic profiles in human Caco-2 cells","volume":"35","author":"Wu","year":"2020","journal-title":"Environ. Toxicol."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"29","DOI":"10.1186\/s12199-020-00870-9","article-title":"Health impacts of environmental contamination of micro- and nanoplastics: A review","volume":"25","author":"Jiang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Environ. Health Prev. Med."},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"752140","DOI":"10.3389\/ftox.2021.752140","article-title":"Current Insights into Potential Effects of Micro-Nanoplastics on Human Health by in-vitro Tests","volume":"3","author":"Llorca","year":"2021","journal-title":"Front. Toxicol."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"12300","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.est.9b02540","article-title":"Plastic teabags release billions of microparticles and nanoparticles into tea","volume":"53","author":"Hernandez","year":"2019","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Technol."},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"280","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.estlett.7b00187","article-title":"Are there nanoplastics in your personal care products?","volume":"4","author":"Hernandez","year":"2017","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Technol. Lett."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"723","DOI":"10.1039\/D0EN00951B","article-title":"Nanoplastic sizes and numbers: Quantification by single particle tracking","volume":"8","author":"Molenaar","year":"2021","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Nano"},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"746","DOI":"10.1038\/s43016-020-00171-y","article-title":"Microplastic release from the degradation of polypropylene feeding bottles during infant formula preparation","volume":"1","author":"Li","year":"2020","journal-title":"Nat. Food"},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Domenech, J., de Britto, M., Velazquez, A., Pastor, S., Hernandez, A., Marcos, R., and Cortes, C. (2021). Long-Term Effects of Polystyrene Nanoplastics in Human Intestinal Caco-2 Cells. Biomolecules, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/biom11101442"}],"container-title":["Nanomaterials"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2079-4991\/12\/10\/1632\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,10]],"date-time":"2025-10-10T23:09:05Z","timestamp":1760137745000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2079-4991\/12\/10\/1632"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2022,5,11]]},"references-count":46,"journal-issue":{"issue":"10","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,5]]}},"alternative-id":["nano12101632"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/nano12101632","relation":{},"ISSN":["2079-4991"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2079-4991","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2022,5,11]]}}}