Thank you to authors:
@magdalenammair.bsky.social @analeticiav.bsky.social, Stephanie Kennedy, Anna Kukkola, Ezra Miller, Andrew Yeh, Towsif Ahmed, Lidwina Bertrand, Andrew Barrick, Win Cowger, and Darragh Doyle

Huge thanks to all collaborators who made this possible. This project was truly a labor of love - no funding, 100% volunteer-run, with authors from all over the world!
More to come soon! 🌎✨

Some good news-

By harmonizing data across particle types, exposure conditions, species, and effect endpoints, we created the most comprehensive quality-assured dataset to date for microplastic ecological risk assessment (i.e., ToMEx 2.0)!
microplastics.springeropen.com/articles/10....

This means we can't judge a book by it's cover (or it's age)! High-quality microplastic effects data remain relatively rare, and just because a paper is newer or is published in a 'good' journal doesn't mean it's reliable!

We also found that while 'better' journals (i.e., ⬆️impact factor & Altmetric score) correlate with higher quality studies, there are MANY exceptions, with some of the best studies in mid-impact journals like ES&T and STOTEN.

• Widespread issues with particle characterization, dose reporting, and experimental design.

• Many studies lack the information needed to determine whether observed effects are real, reproducible, or relevant for risk assessment.

What we found: despite explosive growth in the literature, only a small fraction of studies meet minimum standards for use in health-protective risk assessment.

We found:
• A significant negative trend in study quality over time, despite more papers being published each year :/

This collaborative project was borne out of the 2019 #PFASDatathon I led with colleagues at the
California State Water Board and CDPH.
Kudos to Toki Fillman and Kathleen Attfield for spearheading this groundbreaking work, and the many others who contributed!
waterboards.ca.gov/pfas/pfas_da...

Among 563 adults, those served by water systems with PFAS detections had up to 80% higher serum PFHxS and elevated PFOA, PFOS, and ∑5 PFAS.
These links persisted even in communities without industrial PFAS sources.
#PFAS #DrinkingWater #PublicHealth

Unfortunately this behavior is far too common. While I understand the desire for researchers to sometimes commercialize their science (especially in this funding climate), if a publication claims their data will be made available upon request, it should be honored or amended!