DAVIS, Calif. — Researchers at the University of California, Davis have developed a new imaging approach that maps microplastics throughout the body at high resolution, offering new insight into how the particles accumulate in organs and affect biological function.
The study, led by the Neumann Lab, combines matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging with trapped ion mobility spectrometry to track polystyrene microplastics across an entire mouse body without chemical labeling. The approach allows scientists to visualize where microplastics collect and how they alter metabolism in specific tissues.
“For the first time, we can find plastics in the body, understand how they are metabolized, locate where these chemicals accumulate, and determine how they impact normal metabolic function,” said Elizabeth K. Neumann, Ph.D., assistant professor of chemistry at UC Davis.
Researchers found that microplastics accumulated in several key organs, including the heart, liver, and stomach. The study identified distinct biological effects in each organ, particularly involving disruptions to lipid metabolism.
In heart tissue, the presence of microplastics was associated with reductions in lipids involved in inflammatory signaling and cellular stress responses. In the stomach, researchers observed changes in lipid composition that may affect cell membrane structure and function, including membrane fluidity and intracellular transport processes.
Liver tissue showed evidence of significant lipid remodeling, which researchers linked to increased oxidative stress and inflammation in response to microplastic exposure.
By combining the two advanced imaging techniques, the team was able to detect previously unobservable microplastic fragments, differentiate polymer chain lengths, and map their spatial distribution alongside metabolic changes across the body.
The findings provide a new framework for studying how synthetic materials behave in living organisms and could have implications for environmental health research, toxicology, and regulatory policy, the researchers said.
