Everyday Microplastics May Be Fueling Heart Disease, Study Reveals - Video

A groundbreaking study from the University of California, Riverside, has revealed alarming evidence that everyday exposure to microplastics the tiny particles shed from common plastics-may directly contribute to cardiovascular disease.

The findings are published in the journal Environment International.

Microplastics, found in food, water, and air, have already been detected inside human tissues, including atherosclerotic plaques, but whether they cause artery damage remained unclear until now.

Using LDL receptor-deficient mice, a standard model for studying atherosclerosis, researchers administered microplastics daily (10 mg/kg body weight) over nine weeks. This exposure level mimics realistic environmental intake. Both male and female mice were fed a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet to minimize confounding factors. The study combined detailed histology, plaque quantification, and advanced single-cell RNA sequencing to evaluate the impact on arterial cell populations and gene expression.

Results were strikingly sex-specific: male mice exposed to microplastics developed 63% more arterial plaque in the aortic root and a dramatic 624% increase in the brachiocephalic artery, a major vessel supplying the upper body. Female mice under the same conditions showed no significant plaque progression. Importantly, body weight and blood lipid profiles remained unchanged, indicating plaque increases were independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors like obesity or cholesterol.

At the cellular level, microplastics interfered predominantly with endothelial cells lining arteries, which modulate inflammation and blood flow. Microplastics accumulated within plaques and the endothelial layer, activating gene pathways promoting plaque formation in both mice and humans, revealing a conserved harmful response across species.

Lead researcher Dr. Changcheng Zhou noted this study provides powerful evidence that microplastics are not mere bystanders but active contributors to atherosclerosis, especially in males. The observed sex difference, possibly influenced by hormones like estrogen, opens avenues to identify protective mechanisms.

As microplastic pollution escalates globally, understanding these impacts is urgent for human health. Further research will explore effects in humans, different microplastic types, and molecular pathways to guide prevention and treatment strategies against plastic-induced cardiovascular disease.

REFERENCE: Ting-An Lin, Jianfei Pan, Mya Nguyen, Qianyi Ma, Liang Sun, Sijie Tang, Matthew J. Campen, Hong Chen, Changcheng Zhou. Microplastic exposure elicits sex-specific atherosclerosis development in lean low-density lipoprotein receptor-deficient mice. Environment International, 17 Nov 2025 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2025.109938