From the «let the cyborg race begin» department:
Feed: Slashdot
Title: Microplastics Found In Every Human Placenta Tested In Study
Author: BeauHD
Date: Tue, 27 Feb 2024 22:30:00 -0500
Link: https://science.slashdot.org/story/24/02/28/0029233/microplastics-found-in-every-human-placenta-tested-in-study?utm_source=rss1.0mainlinkanon&utm_medium=feed

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: Microplastics have been
found in every human placenta tested in a study, leaving the researchers worried
about the potential health impacts on developing fetuses. The scientists
analyzed 62 placental tissue samples and found the most common plastic detected
was polyethylene, which is used to make plastic bags and bottles. A second study
revealed microplastics in all 17 human arteries tested and suggested the
particles may be linked to clogging of the blood vessels. [...] Prof Matthew
Campen, at the University of New Mexico, US, who led the research, said: "If we
are seeing effects on placentas, then all mammalian life on this planet could be
impacted. That's not good." He said the growing concentration of microplastics
in human tissue could explain puzzling increases in some health problems,
including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), colon cancer in people under 50, and
declining sperm counts. A 2021 study found people with IBD had 50% more
microplastics in their feces. Campen said he was deeply concerned by the growing
global production of plastics because it meant the problem of microplastics in
the environment "is only getting worse." The research, published in the
Toxicological Sciences journal, found microplastics in all the placenta samples
tested, with concentrations ranging from 6.5 to 790 micrograms per gram of
tissue. PVC and nylon were the most common plastics detected, after
polyethylene. The microplastics were analyzed by using chemicals and a
centrifuge to separate them from the tissue, then heating them and analyzing the
characteristic chemical signature of each plastic. The same technique was used
by scientists at the Capital Medical University in Beijing, China, to detect
microplastics in human artery samples. The concentration of microplastics in
placentas was especially troubling, Campen said. The tissue grows for only eight
months, as it starts to form about a month into pregnancy. "Other organs of your
body are accumulating over much longer periods of time," he added.

[image 2][2] [image 4][4]

Read more of this story[5] at Slashdot.

Links:
[1]: http://twitter.com/home?status=Microplastics+Found+In+Every+Human+Placenta+Tested+In+Study%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fscience.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F24%2F02%2F28%2F0029233%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter (link)
[2]: https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png (image)
[3]: http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fscience.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F24%2F02%2F28%2F0029233%2Fmicroplastics-found-in-every-human-placenta-tested-in-study%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook (link)
[4]: https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png (image)
[5]: https://science.slashdot.org/story/24/02/28/0029233/microplastics-found-in-every-human-placenta-tested-in-study?utm_source=rss1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed (link)