<
https://theconversation.com/world-first-analysis-of-seabirds-whove-eaten-plastic-reveals-slow-insidious-health-impacts-222893>
"We all know microplastics are bad for the environment and our health, but do
we really know how bad?
Our new study, published this week in the journal
Science Advances, compared
changes in 745 proteins found in seabirds with and without plastics in their
stomachs.
We focused on young sable shearwaters (seabirds,
Ardenna carneipes). They
were less than 90 days old and appeared healthy. Despite their young age, the
birds with plastic in their stomachs had signs or symptoms of neurodegenerative
disease, as well as kidney and liver disease.
We also found evidence of significant damage to the lining of the stomach,
likely from microplastics that became embedded in the tissue. It meant proteins
that should only be found in the stomach were detected circulating in the
blood.
While our findings don’t directly relate to human health, this work paints a
distinct picture of the insidious and slow impacts plastic can have on a bird’s
health – even if it doesn’t kill them."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
