Whilst the formation of plastic nanoparticles (nanoplastics) from plastic wastes has been unequivocally evidenced, little is known about the effects of these materials on living organisms at the subcellular or molecular levels. In the present contribution we show through molecular dynamics simulations that polyethylene nanoparticles dissolve in the hydrophobic core of lipid bilayers into a network of disentangled, single polymeric chains. The thereby induced structural and dynamic changes in the bilayer alter vital functions of the cell membrane, which if lacking a mechanism to decompose the polymer chains may result in the death of the cell.

中文翻译：

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纳米塑料可以改变细胞膜吗？

尽管已经明确地证明了由塑料废物形成塑料纳米颗粒（纳米塑料），但对于这些材料在亚细胞或分子水平上对活生物体的影响知之甚少。在目前的贡献中，我们通过分子动力学模拟表明，聚乙烯纳米颗粒溶解在脂质双层的疏水核中，形成一个不规则的，单个聚合物链的网络。由此在双层中引起的结构和动态变化改变了细胞膜的重要功能，如果缺乏分解聚合物链的机制，则可能导致细胞死亡。