2. Academic Validation
  3. Early-life microplastic exposure elicits ADHD-like behaviors by disrupting dopaminergic neurodevelopment in zebrafish

Early-life microplastic exposure elicits ADHD-like behaviors by disrupting dopaminergic neurodevelopment in zebrafish

  • J Hazard Mater. 2025 Sep 15:496:139466. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2025.139466.
Xinyi Cai 1,  Qiongxia Yang 1,  Junpeng Chen 2,  Xiaojuan Lu 1,  Siwan Peng 1,  Xuan Lu 3,  Gang Chen 4,  Biqin Lai 5,  Yan Jin 6,  Lingyan Xing 7
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Key Laboratory of Neuroregeneration of Jiangsu and Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Tissue Engineering Technology Products, Jiangsu Clinical Medicine Center of Tissue Engineering and Nerve Injury Repair, Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu Province 226001, China.
  • 2 School of Nursing and Rehabilitation, Nantong Geriatric Rehabilitation Hospital, Branch of Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu Province 226001, China.
  • 3 Nantong Geriatric Rehabilitation Hospital, Branch of Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu Province 226001, China.
  • 4 Medical School, Nantong University, Nantong, China; Key Laboratory of Neuroregeneration of Jiangsu and the Ministry of Education, Co-innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Tissue Engineering Technology Products, Nantong University, Nantong, China, Nantong University, Nantong, China.
  • 5 Sun Yat-sen, University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
  • 6 School of Life Science, Nantong University, Nantong 226019, China. Electronic address: yjin224@ntu.edu.cn.
  • 7 Key Laboratory of Neuroregeneration of Jiangsu and Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Tissue Engineering Technology Products, Jiangsu Clinical Medicine Center of Tissue Engineering and Nerve Injury Repair, Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu Province 226001, China. Electronic address: xlyan@ntu.edu.cn.
PMID: 40779870 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2025.139466
Abstract

Microplastics (MPs) are emerging environmental contaminants with potential neurodevelopmental risks. We investigated the effects of early-life exposure to polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs; 0.1 μm and 5 μm) in zebrafish larvae (from 8 h post-fertilization to 5 days post-fertilization) across a range of concentrations (0, 0.1, 10, and 100 μg/mL). Larvae in most exposure groups exhibited ADHD-like behavioral phenotypes, characterized by increased locomotor activity and prolonged episodes of high-velocity movement bursts, indicative of hyperactivity and impulsivity. TH immunostaining showed a ∼30 % increase in dopaminergic neurons in larvae exposed to 0.1 μm PS-MPs (1 and 10 μg/mL) compared to controls.Transcriptomic analysis further identified dysregulation of multiple dopamine-associated signaling genes. Notably, pharmacological blockade of dopamine receptors ameliorated the behavioral abnormalities. These findings demonstrate that early-life exposure to PS-MPs can perturb dopaminergic neurodevelopment and elicit ADHD-like behaviors in zebrafish, highlighting microplastics as potential environmental risk factors for neurodevelopmental disorders during critical developmental windows.

Keywords

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); Dopaminergic neurons; Neurodevelopment; Neurotoxicity; Polystyrene microplastics.

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