REVIEW article
Front. Toxicol.
Sec. Environmental Toxicology
This article is part of the Research TopicEnvironmental impacts and challenges of (micro)plastics in aquatic systemsView all articles
Micro/Nanoplastics Pollution: Emerging Challenges for Aquatic Animals and Food Crops
Provisionally accepted
- National Institute of Abiotic Stress Management (ICAR), Baramati, India
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Recent reports worldwide reveal that micro/nanoplastics (MNPs) are pervasive pollutants affecting all ecosystems and a wide range of organisms, including animals, plants, fish, humans, and microorganisms. MNPs have been detected in food items, breast milk, vegetables, and other consumable products, indicating their potential to impact organisms across all life stages. These particles can enter the body through inhalation, ingestion, and dermal contact. Due to their small size, micro/nanoplastics can be readily absorbed by animals and plants, leading to adverse effects on human health and ecological integrity. The present review addresses recent concerns related to MNPs pollution in aquatic animals and crops, with a particular focus on fish and rice. Exposure to MNPs has been reported to impair fish growth performance, immune responses, antioxidant status, digestive functions, reproduction, transgenerational effects, endocrine regulation, vitellogenin induction, neurotransmitter activity, and blood biochemical profiles. Similarly, MNPs adversely affect rice production by influencing various stages of the cropping system, including seed germination, vegetative growth, root and shoot development, tillering, and grain yield. Notably, both fish and rice are staple food sources for humans, highlighting the significance of this issue for food safety and public health. This review emphasizes the urgent need for comprehensive studies on the impacts of micro/nanoplastics on aquatic animals and major food crops. It integrates systematic knowledge on the effects of MNPs on fish growth patterns, immunity, endocrine disruption, reproduction, and key physiological indices, as well as on rice growth and productivity. The synthesized information will be highly valuable for policymakers, government agencies, pollution control authorities, and other stakeholders in policy formulation and decision-making processes.
Keywords: Emergent contaminants, fish, Micro/nanoplastics, rice, stress
Received: 15 Dec 2025; Accepted: 13 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Kundu, Kumar, Kumar, PS, Singh, Godse and Reddy. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Neeraj Kumar
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