Current research on the migration of microplastics into plants is in its most important phase; however, there is no such research on root vegetables, even though the edible parts of root vegetables are in direct contact with microplastics. Considering arsenic (As)-containing groundwater used in hydroponics and the degradation of plastic materials in hydroponic facilities, we investigated the impacts of As and polystyrene (PS) microplastics on carrot growth. We found that PS microplastics sized 1 µm can enter carrot roots and accumulate in the intercellular layer but are unable to enter the cells; those sized 0.2 µm can migrate to the leaves. Larger microplastics can enter the roots (PS particles sized 1219.7 nm) and leaves (607.2 nm) in presence of As (III). Gaussian analysis shows that As increases the negatively charged area of PS and causes a greater amount of microplastics to enter the carrot. As also causes cell walls to distort and deform, allowing PS particles (< 200 nm) to enter the cells. PS and 4 mg L⁻¹ As can induce oxidative bursts in carrot tissue, reducing the carrot quality. Moreover, As exacerbates the effect of PS on carrots. Molecular docking results show that the presence of PS in carrots destroys the tertiary structure of pectin methyl esterase and causes carrots to lose their crispness. These findings indicate that plastic material in hydroponic facilities can be leached to crops. Microplastics produced by the degradation of such materials not only reduce the nutritional value of carrots, leading to economic losses, but also pose potential risks to human health. The presence of As in the hydroponic solution results in more PS entering the carrot tissue and even the cells, bringing greater health threats for the consumers.

目前有关微塑料向植物迁移的研究正处于最重要的阶段。但是，即使根菜的可食部分直接与微塑料接触，也没有关于根菜的研究。考虑到水培法中使用的含砷（As）地下水和水耕设施中塑料材料的降解，我们研究了As和聚苯乙烯（PS）微塑料对胡萝卜生长的影响。我们发现，尺寸为1 µm的PS微塑料可以进入胡萝卜根并积累在细胞间层中，但无法进入细胞。尺寸为0.2 µm的那些可以迁移到叶子上。在As（III）存在的情况下，较大的微塑料可以进入根（PS颗粒尺寸为1219.7 nm）和叶（607.2 nm）。高斯分析表明，As会增加PS的带负电荷的面积，并导致大量的微塑料进入胡萝卜。还会导致细胞壁变形和变形，从而使PS颗粒（<200 nm）进入细胞。PS和4毫克升^-1 As可以在胡萝卜组织中引起氧化性爆发，从而降低胡萝卜的质量。此外，As加剧了PS对胡萝卜的作用。分子对接结果表明，胡萝卜中PS的存在破坏了果胶甲基酯酶的三级结构，并使胡萝卜失去了脆性。这些发现表明，水耕设施中的塑料材料可以浸出到农作物中。这种材料降解产生的微塑料不仅会降低胡萝卜的营养价值，导致经济损失，而且还会对人体健康构成潜在风险。在水培溶液中砷的存在会导致更多的PS进入胡萝卜组织甚至细胞，从而给消费者带来更大的健康威胁。