Scientists watch in real time as microplastics block blood vessels in mouse brains

Tiny plastic particles lodge in mouse brains and block blood vessels, scientists discovered using real-time imaging that revealed how these microplastics travel through the body.

In a study published in Science Advances and reported in Nature, researchers used advanced fluorescence imaging to watch microplastics move through living mouse brains. The particles, smaller than 5 millimeters, were consumed by immune cells that later became trapped in the brain's blood vessels, creating traffic jam-like blockages.

It's "like a car crash in the blood vessels," explains lead researcher Haipeng Huang from Peking University in Beijing. The team used a specialized microscope to peer through surgically implanted windows in the mice's skulls, tracking fluorescent polystyrene spheres – the same plastic found in many household items and toys. Within just three hours of mice drinking plastic-laced water, glowing immune cells appeared in their brains. Some blockages cleared naturally, while others persisted for the entire four-week study period.

The findings add to mounting concerns about microplastics, which have already been found in human brains, livers, gonads, and kidneys.

Previously:
Microplastics have been found in human blood for the first time ever
Microplastics in drinking water is likely not harmful to people, World Health Organization says
Study: people could be eating a credit card's worth of microplastics per week
Tea found in delicious microplastic infusion bags
Microplastics found in every semen test sample in study
New study suggests that microplastics are stored in the balls