title: Microplastics in seafood: Benchmark protocol for their extraction and characterization.
abstract: Pollution of the oceans by microplastics (<5 mm) represents a major environmental problem. To date, a limited number of studies have investigated the level of contamination of marine organisms collected in situ. For extraction and characterization of microplastics in biological samples, the crucial step is the identification of solvent(s) or chemical(s) that efficiently dissolve organic matter without degrading plastic polymers for their identification in a time and cost effective way. Most published papers, as well as OSPAR recommendations for the development of a common monitoring protocol for plastic particles in fish and shellfish at the European level, use protocols containing nitric acid to digest the biological tissues, despite reports of polyamide degradation with this chemical. In the present study, six existing approaches were tested and their effects were compared on up to 15 different plastic polymers, as well as their efficiency in digesting biological matrices. Plastic integrity was evaluated through microscopic inspection, weighing, pyrolysis coupled with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, and Raman spectrometry before and after digestion. Tissues from mussels, crabs and fish were digested before being filtered on glass fibre filters. Digestion efficiency was evaluated through microscopical inspection of the filters and determination of the relative removal of organic matter content after digestion. Five out of the six tested protocols led to significant degradation of plastic particles and/or insufficient tissue digestion. The protocol using a KOH 10% solution and incubation at 60 °C during a 24 h period led to an efficient digestion of biological tissues with no significant degradation on all tested polymers, except for cellulose acetate. This protocol appeared to be the best compromise for extraction and later identification of microplastics in biological samples and should be implemented in further monitoring studies to ensure relevance and comparison of environmental and seafood product quality studies.
authors.affiliation: ANSES, Laboratoire de Sécurité des Aliments, Boulevard du Bassin Napoléon, 62200 Boulogne-sur-Mer, France.
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dehaut
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR), UMR6539/UBO/CNRS/IRD/IFREMER, Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Technopôle Brest-Iroise, Rue Dumont d'Urville, 29280 Plouzané, France.
authors.forename: Anne-Laure
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Cassone
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR), UMR6539/UBO/CNRS/IRD/IFREMER, Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Technopôle Brest-Iroise, Rue Dumont d'Urville, 29280 Plouzané, France.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Frère
authors.affiliation: ANSES, Laboratoire de Sécurité des Aliments, Boulevard du Bassin Napoléon, 62200 Boulogne-sur-Mer, France.
authors.forename: Ludovic
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hermabessiere
authors.affiliation: ANSES, Laboratoire de Sécurité des Aliments, Boulevard du Bassin Napoléon, 62200 Boulogne-sur-Mer, France.
authors.forename: Charlotte
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Himber
authors.affiliation: IFREMER, Laboratoire Détection, Capteurs et Mesures (LDCM), Centre Bretagne, ZI de la Pointe du Diable, CS 10070, 29280 Plouzané, France.
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rinnert
authors.affiliation: ANSES, Direction d'Evaluation des Risques, 14 Rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 94701 Maisons-Alfort Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Gilles
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rivière
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR), UMR6539/UBO/CNRS/IRD/IFREMER, Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Technopôle Brest-Iroise, Rue Dumont d'Urville, 29280 Plouzané, France.
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lambert
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR), UMR6539/UBO/CNRS/IRD/IFREMER, Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Technopôle Brest-Iroise, Rue Dumont d'Urville, 29280 Plouzané, France.
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Soudant
authors.affiliation: IFREMER, Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR), UMR 6539/UBO/CNRS/IRD/IFREMER, 29280 Plouzané, France.
authors.forename: Arnaud
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Huvet
authors.affiliation: ANSES, Laboratoire de Sécurité des Aliments, Boulevard du Bassin Napoléon, 62200 Boulogne-sur-Mer, France.
authors.forename: Guillaume
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Duflos
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR), UMR6539/UBO/CNRS/IRD/IFREMER, Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Technopôle Brest-Iroise, Rue Dumont d'Urville, 29280 Plouzané, France. Electronic address: ika.paulpont@univ-brest.fr.
authors.forename: Ika
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Paul-Pont
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D059001:Aquatic Organisms / Q000378:metabolism*; D019985:Benchmarking; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D010969:Plastics / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism*; D017747:Seafood / Q000032:analysis*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D010969:Plastics; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Digestion; Method; Microplastics; Plastic integrity; Seafood products; Tissue