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Faculty Advisor

Kyle A. Grice, PhD

Abstract

Microplastic (MP) contamination in aquatic ecosystems poses significant concerns for environmental and public health, as seafood represents a critical food source worldwide. Despite increasing evidence of MP presence in marine organisms, efficient and accessible detection methods remain essential for characterizing contamination patterns and informing regulatory frameworks. This study extracted MPs from brain, gill, intestine, liver, and muscle tissues of gilt-head bream (Sparus aurata) and European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax), two commercially important species from the Gulf of Cádiz, Spain, using a NaOH–HNO₃ chemical digestion protocol. Isolated particles were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, with spectra matched against the Open Specy open-source polymer reference database for identification. MPs were detected in 46% of tissue samples (41/90), with gill and intestinal tissues exhibiting the highest contamination rates (80–90%), while internal organs including brain and liver demonstrated lower detection frequencies (0–20%). Predominant polymers identified included polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyamide 66, and polystyrene (PS). This digestion-FTIR pipeline provides a reproducible and cost-effective framework for MP biomonitoring in fish tissues using commonly available laboratory materials and open-source analytical tools, offering an alternative to protocols requiring specialized equipment or proprietary software. These findings contribute to the understanding of MP distribution in commercially harvested fish species and support the need for continued research into the ecological and public health implications of MP contamination in marine food webs.

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