The relationship between humans and plastics has become intricate due to their versatile nature and low production cost. Plastics generation has surpassed that of other manufactured products, which, coupled with the prevailing poor waste management systems, makes it a serious problem for the terrestrial and aquatic environments as its final destination. Their extensive presence has continued to pose a significant threat, not only to the aquatic ecosystem but also to the approximately 3 billion people relying on it for their livelihood. Even more disturbing were the recent findings of these plastics in food and drinking water and the evidence of human exposure, the long-term health effects of which are largely unknown. This ubiquitous phenomenon has over time put plastics under critical observation, leading to the development of many local and international policies, resolutions, and directives aimed at addressing and reversing the menace. This review provided the first snapshot of the global and local governance strategies currently aimed at mitigating plastic pollution, their limitations, and future directions. The findings of the review revealed several aspects of microplastics (MPs) pollution to be overlooked in policy formulation, a laxity in policy implementation, and an apparent lack of indices to ascertain the impact of the regulations. Furthermore, there is currently no regulation on MPs contamination of food and drinking water and an apparent lack of funding for research into the health effects of plastics and their alternatives. This, therefore, necessitates the need for a well-coordinated approach at international and national levels to scale up these policies in all countries and translate them from paper to measurable, holistic, and realizable actions that will address all forms of plastic pollution.

Technological advances, coupled with increasing demands by consumers, have led to a drastic increase in plastic production. After serving their purposes, these plastics reach our water bodies as their destination and become ingested by aquatic organisms. This ubiquitous phenomenon has exposed humans to microplastics mostly through the consumption of sea food. This has led the World Health Organization (WHO) to make an urgent call for the assessment of environmental pollution due to microplastics and its effect on human health. This review summarizes studies between 1999 and 2020 in relation to microplastics in aquatic ecosystems and human food products, their potential toxic effects as elicited in animal studies, and policies on their use and disposal. There is a paucity of information on the toxicity mechanisms of microplastics in animal studies, and despite their documented presence in food products, no policy has been in place so far, to monitor and regulates microplastics in commercial foods meant for human consumption. Although there are policies and regulations with respect to plastics, these are only in a few countries and in most instances are not fully implemented due to socioeconomic reasons, so they do not address the problem across the entire life cycle of plastics from production to disposal. More animal research to elucidate pathways and early biomarkers of microplastic toxicity that can easily be detected in humans is needed. This is to create awareness and influence policies that will address this neglected threat to food safety and security.

Microplastics (MPs) have become pollutants of concern due to their unknown human health effect and negative impact on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. There is increasing number of experimental research on MPs globally with its effects not fully understood; recent animal studies explore its effects on the intestines, yet on other vital organs. Javanese medaka fish was exposed to polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) beads for a period of 21 days. Histological alterations, intestinal oxidative stress, permeability and neurotoxicity were evaluated. Significant inflammatory changes and tissue damage were observed in the intestine, liver and kidney. Intestinal oxidative stress and permeability were found to be significantly increased. In the brain, neurotoxicity characterised by a significant induction of oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation and the inhibition of acetylcholinesterase enzyme were elucidated. This study provided an insight into the multiple organ effect of microplastics exposure, necessitating further exploration and identification of biomarkers to be utilised for biomonitoring population at risk in the future.

Nerol, a monoterpene is evident to possess diverse biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-microbial, anti-spasmodic, anthelmintic, and anti-arrhythmias. This study aims to evaluate its hepatoprotective effect against paracetamol-induced liver toxicity in a rat model. Five groups of rats (n = 7) were orally treated (once daily) with 0.05% tween 80 dissolved in 0.9% NaCl solution (vehicle), paracetamol 640 mg/kg (negative control), 50 mg/kg silymarin (positive control), or nerol (50 and 100 mg/kg) for 14 days, followed by the hepatotoxicity induction using paracetamol (PCM). The blood samples and livers of the animals were collected and subjected to biochemical and microscopical analysis. The histological findings suggest that paracetamol caused lymphocyte infiltration and marked necrosis, whereas maintenance of the normal hepatic structural was observed in group pre-treated with silymarin and nerol. The rats pre-treated with nerol significantly and dose-dependently reduced the hepatotoxic markers in animals. Nerol at 100 mg/kg significantly reversed the paracetamol-induced altered situations, including the liver enzymes, plasma proteins, antioxidant enzymes and serum bilirubin, lipid peroxidation (LPO) and cholesterol [e.g., total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c)] levels in animals. Taken together, nerol exerted significant hepatoprotective activity in rats in a dose-dependent manner. PCM-induced toxicity and nerol induced hepatoprotective effects based on expression of inflammatory and apoptosis factors will be future line of work for establishing the precise mechanism of action of nerol in Wistar albino rats.

Microplastics (MPs) have become emerging pollutants of public health concern, due to their impact on aqua-terrestrial ecosystems and integration into the food web, with evidence of human exposure and unrevealed health implications. There is a paucity of information regarding the effects of MPs exposure on the gut system using metagenomic and metabolomic approaches. In this study, Javanese medaka fish was exposed to 5 µm beads of polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) suspensions, at concentrations of 100 μg/L (MP-LOW), 500 μg/L (MP-MED), and 1000 μg/L (MP-HIGH), for a duration of 21 days, and evaluated for gut microbiome and metabolome responses. The results revealed a significant reduction (p < 0.05) in richness and diversity of the gut microbiome in the MP-HIGH group, and identification of 7 bacterial genera as differential features by the Linear discriminant analysis Effect Size (LEfSe). The gut metabolic profile revealed upregulation of 9 metabolites related to energy metabolism, via tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA), creatine pathway, and urea cycle, as determined by the pathway analysis. Furthermore, positive correlation was found between the genus Aeromonas and glucose, lactate, and creatine metabolites. The study revealed that PS-MPs exposure resulted in altered bacterial microbiome and metabolic disorder related to energy metabolism. It further provided additional data on gut bacterial genera and metabolites associated with MPs toxicity in aquatic organism, which will inevitably enable its future health risks assessment in animals and possibly humans.

The main goal of the present research was to explore the seasonal variation of deoxynivalenol (DON) in wheat, corn, and their products, collected during 2018–2019. Samples of 449 of wheat and products and 270 samples of corn and their products were examined using reverse-phase liquid chromatography with a UV detector. The findings of the present work showed that 104 (44.8%) samples of wheat and products from the summer season, and 91 (41.9%) samples from winter season were contaminated with DON (concentration limit of detections (LOD) to 2145 µg/kg and LOD to 2050 µg/kg), from summer and winter seasons, respectively. In corn and products, 87 (61.2%) samples from summer and 57 (44.5%) samples from winter season were polluted with DON with levels ranging from LOD to 2967 µg/kg and LOD to 2490 µg/kg, from the summer and winter season, respectively. The highest dietary intake of DON was determined in wheat flour 8.84 µg/kg body weight/day from the summer season, and 7.21 µg/kg body weight/day from the winter season. The findings of the work argued the need to implement stringent guidelines and create awareness among farmers, stakeholders, and traders of the harmful effect of DON. It is mostly observed that cereal crops are transported and stockpiled in jute bags, which may absorb moisture from the environment and produce favorable conditions for fungal growth. Therefore, these crops must store in polyethylene bags during transportation and storage, and moisture should be controlled. It is highly desirable to use those varieties that are more resistant to fungi attack. Humidity and moisture levels need to be controlled during storage and transportation.