Emerging Plastic-Related Toxicity: From Environmental Exposure to Human Health

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past decade, the rise in plastics and their accumulation in the environment has become a public concern. To limit petroleum-based plastic pollution, bioplastics—comprising bio‐based and/or biodegradable polymers—have been publicized as “green” alternatives with the positive connotation of “environmental sustainability”. As technological advancements refine their properties, plastics and bioplastics are increasingly permeating industries. However, their rapid integration into daily-use products requires the scientific scrutiny needed to assess their potential implications for human health. New insights are emerging suggesting that exposure to plastics—especially in the form of microplastics and nanoplastics—and their additives could cause adverse health effects by compromising cell metabolism and inducing oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in both in vitro systems and animal models. Therefore, this Special Issue welcomes reviews and research papers aiming to assess the acute and chronic toxicity of plastics (including micro- and nanoplastics) on human health by analyzing toxic and epigenetic effects, metabolic alterations, and molecular mechanisms of action in human and mammal experimental model systems.

Dr. Antonietta Santoro
Dr. Marta Anna Szychlinska
Guest Editors

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