Systematic Review of Microplastics and Nanoplastics in Outdoor and Indoor air: Human Exposure Assessment Open Access

Abstract

Micro- and nanoplastic (MNP) exposure to humans is likely unavoidable with inhalation one of the main routes of exposure. To our knowledge, there is no comprehensive exposure assessment of Microplastics (MP) in indoor and outdoor air. The current paper provides a human exposure assessment of microplastics in the air using systematically reviewed literature of articles that provided dose or concentration of measured MNPs in indoor and/or outdoor air as well as doses used in animal and human toxicology studies of MNPs. Average inhalation exposure doses were calculated for different age groups ranging from 106 MPs/kg-BW/day for infants to 29.7 MPs/kg-BW/day for adults indoors, and 35.5 MPs/kg-BW/day for infants and 9.82 MPs/kg-BW/day for adults outdoors for active sampling methods. Pregnant women had higher MP inhalation exposure doses than adults and infants averaged the highest MP exposure doses from air compared to all other age groups. Average indoor inhalation exposure doses were higher that outdoor exposure doses for all ages. Passive sampling methods had higher averages for inhalation exposure doses with averages ranging between 1053 to 4555 MPs/kg-BW/day for all age categories for indoor samples. MNP doses used in animal and human in vitro studies averaged higher estimated inhalation exposure doses than exposure doses calculated from environmental MP samples. This study provides the first known exposure data of MP in air using systematically reviewed literature for MPs in indoor and outdoor air and provides inhalation exposure doses estimated from animal models or human exposure to MNPs and human in vitro toxicology studies.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

1.    Introduction

2.    Methods

2.1 Literature Review

2.2 Human Exposure Calculations

2.3 Human and Animal Toxicology Studies

3.    Results

3.1 Literature Review

3.2 Human Exposure Calculations

3.3 Human and Animal Toxicology Studies

4.    Discussion

5.    Conclusion and Recommendations

6.    References

7.    Tables and Figures

8.    Appendices

About this Master's Thesis

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School	Rollins School of Public Health
Department	Environmental Health
Degree	M.P.H.
Submission	Master's Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Environmental Health Health Sciences, Toxicology
Keyword	microplastic nanoplastic exposure
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Dana Barr, Emory University

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