Polyethylene, PVC, nylon… microplastics present in all human placentas, according to a new study

Des microplastiques présents dans tous les placentas humains

Plastic is everywhere. Even in the human placenta, an organ which ensures exchanges between the mother and the fetus… This is what a team of researchers from the University of New Mexico has just shown, which has even identified plastic the most common in placental tissue: polyethylene, the plastic with which bags and bottles are made.

Plastic is everywhere. Even in the human placenta, an organ which ensures exchanges between the mother and the fetus… This is what a team of researchers from the University of New Mexico has just shown, which has even identified plastic the most common in placental tissue: polyethylene, the plastic with which bags and bottles are made.

"The lives of all mammals on this earth could be affected"

Water, milk, shellfish, fruits, vegetables… microplastics are omnipresent in what we consume. At what levels are they then present in our body ? Researchers from the University of New Mexico (United States) have tested a new tool capable of measuring the presence of these substances in the human placenta, this organ which allows exchanges between the mother and the fetus.

Published on February 17, 2024 in the journal Toxicological Sciences, the results confirm that all the placenta samples tested were contaminated with plastic microparticles. Across the 62 placenta samples, concentrations ranged from 6.5 to 790 micrograms of plastic per gram of tissue. "If we see effects on the placenta, this means that the lives of all mammals on this earth could be affected", s&rsquo ;alarms Professor Matthew Camden who led the study.

Polyethylene, PVC, nylon…

Using a new technique, scientists, in partnership with researchers at the University of Oklahoma, have succeeded in isolating plastics from placental tissue. They then heated them to capture and analyze the gas emissions.

Polyethylene, used to make plastic bags and bottles, was the most common plastic (54%), followed by polyvinyl chloride, also known as PVC and nylon. Respectively 10% of plastics found. Nine other polymers were also present in the samples studied.

What about other organs, while the placenta has a very short lifespan. It begins to develop one month after the start of pregnancy and its growth lasts only eight months. "Plastics accumulate over much longer periods in other organs of the body", points out the scientist.

Contemporary diseases explained by the omnipresence of plastic ?

And if plastics are considered biologically inert, some microparticles would be small enough to pass through cell membranes. Therefore, what precisely are their effects on health ? For Professor Camden, "the increasing concentration of microplastics in human tissues could explain the surprising increase in certain health problems, such as inflammatory bowel disease and colon cancer in people under 50, as well as low sperm counts. Camden and his team continue their work to try to answer these questions as the plastic crisis only worsens.

The manufacturing and use of plastics have been growing exponentially for decades. As a reminder, industrial plastic was born in 1907 with Bakelite; it has been used extensively since the second half of the 20th century. According to the OECD, between 2000 and 2019, plastic production doubled to reach 460 million tonnes, the same year 353 million tonnes of plastic waste were generated. The particles break down into even smaller particles and so on. "We absorb it by ingestion, but also by inhalation. It affects us, humans, but also all animals and plants, notes Marcus Garcia, who works with Prof. Camden.