Biological Health Effects and Food-chain Transfer Risks of Micro/Nano Plastics in Soil

Micro/nano plastics (MNPs) pollution has evolved into a global environmental issue that must be addressed. MNPs can enter the soil and accumulate in the soil for long-term and thus pose a potential risk to soil ecosystem health. From the perspectives of soil biological health effects and food chain risks, this paper reviews the research progress in the investigation of soil MNPs, discusses the effects of soil MNPs on plants, animals, and microorganisms, and summarizes the transport of MNPs in terrestrial organisms and the food chains. In addition, the future research directions of MNPs in soils are also prospected. MNPs exist widely in soils with different functions, and can be absorbed by plants, ingested by animals, and thus entering the human body through the terrestrial food chain. In the future, it is necessary to strengthen the research on the pollution process and biological health effects of MNPs in soil, and to strengthen the risk assessment of MNPs in the soil eco-system and the food chain transmission, so as to provide scientific guidance and technical methodological reference for the monitoring, control and management of MNPs in soils.