Mechanism of Growth Phase-Dependent Nanoplastic Bioaccumulation in <i>Tetrahymena thermophila</i>.

ABSTRACT: Nanoplastics are ubiquitous in aquatic environments, and elucidating their bioaccumulation behavior is essential for assessing toxicity and trophic transfer risks. While most studies focus on nanoplastics properties (e.g., type, size, surface charge), the influence of organismal growth stage remains unclear. Through bioaccumulation kinetic experiments with 10 mg/L polystyrene nanoplastics (PSNPs), this study found that Tetrahymena thermophila (T. thermophila) in the lag phase (cell density 4 × 10⁴ cells/mL) exhibited the highest uptake rate of nanoplastics, 1.2-5.8 times that of the exponential phase (1-5 × 10⁵ cells/mL) and 7.7 times that of the stationary phase (>5 × 10⁵ cells/mL). Lag phase cells also had a larger specific surface area (0.3

SUBMITTER: Jiang Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12729904 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature