Academic Journal
A QA/QC screening framework to assess studies reporting microplastic presence in human organs, tissues, and bodily fluids.
| Τίτλος: | A QA/QC screening framework to assess studies reporting microplastic presence in human organs, tissues, and bodily fluids. |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Lane T; Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management Group, Department of Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands., de Ruijter VN; Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management Group, Department of Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands., Wardani I; Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management Group, Department of Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands., Barchiesi M; Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management Group, Department of Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands., Koelmans AA; Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management Group, Department of Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands. Electronic address: bart.koelmans@wur.nl. |
| Πηγή: | Environment international [Environ Int] 2026 Aug; Vol. 214, pp. 110429. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Jul 22. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Elsevier Science Country of Publication: Netherlands NLM ID: 7807270 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1873-6750 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 01604120 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Environ Int Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Publication: Original Publication: Oxford; Elmsford, N. Y., Pergamon Press. |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Body Fluids*/chemistry , Microplastics*/analysis , Environmental Monitoring*/methods, Humans ; Quality Control ; Risk Assessment ; Environmental Exposure |
| Περίληψη: | Quality Assurance and -control (QA/QC) tools are essential to evaluate the reliability of data on nano- and microplastic particles measured in the human body for use in risk assessment. Currently, no such criteria exist for human samples. To support human health risk assessment related to internal exposure to these particles, we developed a QA/QC screening protocol with fourteen criteria across three categories: sampling methods, particle characterization, and contamination mitigation. We applied this tool to evaluate 133 datasets from 101 studies reporting measurements of microplastics in human organs, tissues, and bodily fluids. None of the studies nor datasets met all essential QA/QC criteria, indicating their current value lies primarily in pioneering exploratory research. Common gaps were found in sample representativeness, the use of positive controls, and documentation of blank procedures. Data were also sparse for organs critical to toxicokinetic processes and physiologically-based kinetic modelling, highlighting a significant knowledge gap. Even in studies with relatively strong QA/QC performance, some findings warrant careful evaluation of biological plausibility. We recommend that future studies not only improve QA/QC practices but also explicitly reflect on the plausibility of their results to avoid misinterpretation and miscommunication. (Copyright © 2026 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Data quality; Exposure; Human health; Microplastic; Risk assessment |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 0 (Microplastics) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260726 Date Completed: 20260729 Latest Revision: 20260729 |
| Update Code: | 20260730 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.envint.2026.110429 |
| PMID: | 42503274 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1873-6750 |
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| DOI: | 10.1016/j.envint.2026.110429 |