Analysis and toxicity of microplastics in organisms and humans originated from aquatic environment

Microplastics (MPs) acted as environmental emerging pollutants have been widely distributed in natural waters. Due to their small particle size and large specific surface area, MPs can be adsorbed or accumulated in aquatic organisms, resulting in potential toxicity to mammals or humans through dietary routes. In this review, we discussed the distribution of MPs in natural waters, aquatic organisms, and humans. Pretreatment methods for the determination of MPs in biological samples were summarized, which are closely related to tissue composition, especially for human samples. Further elucidation of the potential toxicity and underlined mechanisms of MPs in mammals was carried out to parallel it in humans. This review provides a comprehensive understanding of the ecological and health risks of MPs originating from natural waters, as well as perspectives for more specific studies on the toxicity of MPs to mammals or humans. •MPs levels in natural waters were closely related to the regional economies.•The living environment and habits determined the intake of MPs in humans.•Efficient digestion of biological samples for MPs extraction depended on chemical compositions of tissues.•Identification of MPs should be combined the physical and chemical characterization.•Biotoxicity of MPs mainly depended on their physicochemical properties and environmental factors.