Microplastics are everywhere. Researchers have found them in water sources in the most remote areas of the world. However, one group of tiny creatures seem immune to the plastic problem, even in waters that are absolutely inundated with micro and nano plastic particles. Veuer’s Tony Spitz has the details.
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00:00Microplastics are everywhere. Researchers have found them in water sources in the most remote areas of the world.
00:05Meanwhile, doctors have found them in the tissue of living organisms, including in humans.
00:10However, one group of tiny creatures seems immune to the plastic problem,
00:13even in waters that are absolutely inundated with micro and nanoplastic particles.
00:18The analysis looked at several creatures, including nematodes, seed shrimps, crustaceans, and tardigrades,
00:24finding that the tardigrades were the only ones that seemed impermeable to the tiny plastic particles.
00:29With the researchers writing,
00:30the absence of microplastic ingestion by tardigrada likely links to the structure of their feeding apparatus,
00:36which includes a mouth tube with a stylet used to pierce and suck, rather than ingest prey organisms whole.
00:42Still, they did observe the near-microscopic creatures sporting plastic bits on their exteriors,
00:46specifically on their legs.
00:48The study also observed the first-ever evidence that flatworms and hairybacks have consumed microplastics,
00:54with the researchers outlining that microplastics are a serious ecological threat,
00:58essentially from the bottom of the food chain, all the way to the top.