Microplastics in humans: first look at how they travel inside us
NCT ID NCT07075991
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study gave 6 healthy adults a single tiny dose of labeled microplastics to track how much gets absorbed into the blood and how it leaves the body through urine and stool. Participants provided samples over 5 days. The goal is to understand basic movement of microplastics in humans, not to test a treatment.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- 1 μm [14C]-labelled polystyrene microplastic particles
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could reveal how much microplastic enters the bloodstream and how the body clears it, informing future health risk assessments.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early-stage study with only 6 participants and no comparison group. Results may not apply to larger populations or different microplastic types.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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6 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jun 2025
- Finished
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Aug 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 65 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Healthy males and females using contraception during and for 3 months after the study. * Aged from 18-65 years at the time of signing informed consent * 18.5 \< BMI \< 25 kg·m-2 * Must be willing and able to communicate and participate in the whole study * Must have regular bowel movements (i.e. average stool production of ≥1 and ≤3 stools per day) Exclusion Criteria: * Diabetes (Type 1, Type 2, or genetic form of diabetes) * Any diagnosed cardiovascular (heart) disease or high blood pressure (≥140 mmHg systolic and/or ≥90 mmHg diastolic) * History of clinically significant cardiovascular, renal, hepatic, chronic respiratory or gastro-intestinal disease, immunodeficiency, endocrine, neurological or psychiatric disorders * Known severe kidney problems * Subjects who have regular gastrointestinal complaints including abdominal pain, stomach upsets and borborygmi, known or suspected irritable bowel syndrome, or functional constipation * Recent or chronic history of diarrhoea * Known anaemia * Known impaired liver function * A personal or family history of thrombosis (clots), epilepsy, seizures, or schizophrenia. * Chronic use of any prescribed or over the counter pharmaceuticals (excluding oral contraceptives and contraceptive devices) * History of any drug or alcohol abuse in the past two years * A confirmed positive alcohol breath test at screening or admission * Any known food allergies or intolerances to the 14 major food allergens (celery, cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, lupin, milk, molluscs, mustard, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame seeds, soybeans, sulphur dioxide and sulphites) or history of a malabsorption syndrome including coeliac disease * Currently taking part in other scientific research * Having received a product with 14C in the past 12 months * Pregnant or breastfeeding * Subjects who have taken antibiotics within the 60 days prior to the adaptation period. * Unable to give consent * Employed or undertaking a thesis or internship at the department of Human and Animal Physiology
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Wageningen University, Department of Human and Animal Physiology
Wageningen, 6708 WD, Netherlands
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.