Kai Lu, Ruxia Qiao, Hao An, Yan Zhang,

Influence of microplastics on the accumulation and chronic toxic effects of cadmium in zebrafish (Danio rerio),
Chemosphere,

Volume 202,
2018,
Pages 514-520,
ISSN 0045-6535,

Abstract:

As the accumulation of microplastics (MPs) in the environment continues to rise, more concerns focus on the health risk of combinedexposure to MPs and other contaminants.
The aim of this study is to investigate the influences of MPs on the tissue-accumulation of cadmium
(Cd) in zebrafish and explore the related chronic toxic effects induced by combined exposure of Cd and MPs.
After co-exposure to MPs and Cd for 3 weeks, 20 and 200 μg/L MPs increased the accumulation of Cd in
zebrafish livers (46% and 184%), guts (10% and 25%) and gills (9% and 46%).
The Cd accumulation was gill > gut > liver. Comprehensive analyzesof biochemical biomarkers, histopathological observation and functionalgene expression firstly demonstrated that the presence of MPs enhanced
the toxicity of Cd on zebrafish and the combined exposure caused oxidative damage and inflammation in zebrafish tissues.
Collectively, our results highlight the chronic effects of combined exposure to MPs and heavy metals.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=19QNBzSwS5Fa24OhiUuVA6i0mES68Q5vh
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2018.03.145.(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0045653518305629)