The difference in plastic quantities surprised him, but his team found another concerning trend, too. Cells in the plaque with lots of plastic showed different gene activity than those with low plastic. In the high-plastic environment, one group of immune cells had switched off a gene that’s associated with turning off inflammation. Clark’s team also found genetic differences in a group of stem cells thought to help prevent heart attacks and strokes by reducing inflammation and stabilizing plaque. “Could it be that microplastics are somehow altering their gene expression?” Clark said.
Well thats certainly concerning!
Don’t worry. I’m sure we can keep throwing billions of spanners into billions of engines continuously without consequence.
We need a plastic magnet to save us all. WTF is this timeline.
Everyone of us has the equivalent of a plastic spoon in the brain. Humanity is finished. Not a big loss, all things considered.
According to the Science Vs podcast it’s nowhere near that amount of plastic. It’s an exaggeration that got press because it’s such a disturbing visual.