Microplastics discovered in human semen and follicular fluid in new research

Scientists identified microplastics – Small and Common Parts According to the new study, now in our seas, drinking water, food and increasing texture – human semen and follicular fluid.

A small group of 25 women and 18 men participated in the study published in Human Reproduction magazine on Tuesday. Microplastics were detected in 69% of follicular fluid samples and 55% of seminal fluid samples. Follicular liquid It is the liquid surrounding an egg in the ovarian follicle.

Research abstract – A brief summary of the completed research – and has not yet been revised. It was presented on Tuesday at the 41st annual meeting of the European Human Reproduction and Embryology Association in Paris.

“Previous studies had already proposed this possibility, so the presence of microplastics in the human reproductive system is not completely unexpected. Emilio Gómez-Sánchez, the next fertility in Spain in Murcia. “But it surprised us, how common it is. This is not an isolated finding – it looks quite common.”

Microplastics are polymer trailers HE Size range 0.2 inches (5 millimeters) less than 1/25,000 (1 micrometer). Polymers chemical compounds With long chains of large and recurrent molecular units called Monomer and known to be flexible and durable. Most plastics are synthetic polymer.

Plastics smaller than measuring criteria for microplastics are considered nanoplastic measured in a billion of a meter.

Gómez-Sánchez said, “Microplastics first enter the body in three ways: swallowing, inhalation and skin contact,” he said. “They can do it from there Enter the bloodstreamIt then distributes them in the body, including reproductive organs. “

In previous studies, the parts were also detected in various body parts or fluids. lung– placenta– brain– testesnasal tissue on the base Your brain, penis And human feces.

The founder of the Plastic Research Council. Chris Dearmitt agrees that he is not a threat because he is extremely low and is not toxic, “he said.

However, although there are little known about the potential effects of microplastics on human health, chemicals used in plastic production – usually caused by plastics – health risk to contain hormonal deteriorationSome cancers, respiratory diseases and skin irritation.

Test body fluids for germs

Research participants were sick and donors in the next fertility in Murcia. While women officially entered egg intake known as follicular aspiration for auxiliary reproduction, men had semen analysis. The authors hid and freeze samples on the glass, and then they were incubated for two days before analyzing using a imaging technique that combines microscopy and infrared laser.

The research team also analyzed the containers used to collect and store samples to ensure that they were not contaminated with germs. The summary does not explain which materials are made of collection containers.

Imaging revealed nine types of microplastic in reproductive fluids. More than 50% of follicular fluid samples contained polyamide (PA), polyurethane (PU) and polyethylene (PE), which were discovered in more than 30% of the polyetfloroethylene (PTFE) and polyethylene terecthalate (PET), follicular fluid samples.

Polypropylene (PP), Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyctic acid (PLA) appeared in more than 20% of follicular fluid samples.

56% of semen samples contained PTFE.

Synthetic polyamide is generally known as nylon used in textile, plastic and automotive parts. Polyurethane, furniture, construction, automotive parts, shoes and more are widely used in coatings, foam and adhesives. Polyethylene and polypropylene are generally found in packaging, construction uses and toys and consumer goods such as kitchen utensils.

Plastic PTFE is widely used in non -stick pots, while pet is found in many foods and beverages. Polyvinyl chloride is generally used in construction, packaging and medical industries, while PLA is primarily found in food packaging, medical implants and 3D printed objects.

In most examples, the researchers found only one or two particles, but others said they had identified up to five. Microplastic concentrations were higher in follicular fluid than semen. However, total microplastic concentrations in both fluids were relatively low compared to the concentrations of non -plastic particles. The summary did not explain what non -plastic particles were.

“Unfortunately, (the findings) are not surprising, Dr. Dr. said. Matthew J. Campen – a researcher who leads the discoveries of germs and testicles in the brain – by e -mail.

Despite the preliminary research, Campen, who is not involved in the study and is a Professor of Regents Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of New Mexico, adds the ground for further work of the relationship between plastic exposure and reproductive fitness, ”he added.

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS LEFT

Research Approved previous studies This found microplastics in these reproductive fluids and said that these germs were absorbed in the intestine and then revealing important questions, including moving to the gonads.

“This shows that a very natural mechanism has been missed,” he added. “It will also be important to evaluate the plastics in the Nano -scale range.”

Gómez-Sánchez, naturally or through in vitro fertilization, may not have to worry about the findings.

“We don’t know if a couple has a direct effect on a baby conception and carrying a direct effect on the period of carrying,” he added. “Reproduction is a complex equation, and microplastics are a variable in this equation.”

Experts, findings can not yet be linked to more general health results, he said.

Gómez-Sánchez said, “So far, the effects of germs on humans have been predicted from the animal studies that microplastics were applied at high concentrations,” he said. “We don’t have direct evidence about their impact on people right now.”

EPS Industrial Alliance Executive Director Betsy Bowers reiterated these waiver and said that animal research results were not indicative of the damage at the levels of regular exposure. EPS is a North American trade union representing the EPS industry, the EPS (expanded polystyrene) industrial alliance.

Gómez-Sánchez, the finding of the follicular fluid more than semen can be situational, because the working group is small. However, when an ovary is stimulated for assisted reproduction, blood flow to the ovaries increases, which can provide more germs to the ovaries.

Dr. Consultant Urologist at Jumeirah American Clinic in Dubai. Ranjith Ramasamy said that additional research is needed to determine microplastic types and quantities that may cause health problems. Ramasamy, who was not involved in the study, pioneered the research that finds germs in the penis.

“Plan is to increase the number of cases and to conduct a survey on lifestyle habits to determine whether any of these habits are connected to higher plastic concentrations in the ovaries and seminar plasma,” Gómez-Sánchez said.

Gómez-Sánchez and other researchers also plan to discover whether the presence of germs in reproductive fluids affects the quality of sperm and oocytes. Oocytes are cells that form an ovum in the ovaries, a mature female reproductive cell that can be divided by sperm to form an embryo on fertilization.

How do you decrease to exposure to microplastics

The importance of the findings is not yet clear, but at the University of Portugal, Portugal, Lisbon, Professor of Gynecology and Gynecology. Carlos Calhaz-Jorge should be considered as an additional argument to avoid the use of plastic in our daily lives. In a news bulletin. Calhaz-Jorge did not participate in the research.

Considering the prevalence of plastics, it may be difficult to avoid. Philip Landrigan, E -Posta. In addition to reducing the obvious use of plastic, you can avoid using plastic cutting boards and eating ultra -coated foods.

Ramasamy also said that drinking water from plastic bottles limits food in the microwave in plastic containers and limits hot food from plastic containers.

Foods can be stored as glass, stainless steel or bamboo instead of plastic.

But “Speaking – Immediately – he needs to pass to the policy makers, Camp said Campen. “Hoping that individual elections can make a difference is a clearly lost strategy. Federal governments in the world need to make major changes in waste management and recycling policies.”

Annual plastic production by weight Increased 250 times Landrigan said he had doubled in the last 75 years and until 2060.

Landrigan, who is not involved in the research, said, in order to reduce plastic pollution and protect human health, it will be important that the global plastic agreement, which is currently negotiating in the United Nations, sets a global boundary on plastic production, Land he added.

“But smart governments can move now, Camp Campen called.

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