Formation of metal-microplastic complexes in lung adenocarcinoma is associated with increased risk of cancer progression

Abstract

Metal-microplastic complexes (m-MPs) represent an emerging environmental health concern. However their presence and pathological implications in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) remain underexplored. This study employed a multimodal approach to characterize m-MPs in 15 LUAD patients, integrating several techniques, including laser direct infrared imaging (LDIR), pyrolysis gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GCMS), inductively coupled plasma analysis (ICP), and Sequencing at the transcriptome level. Totally, 34 distinct microplastic types were identified in lung tissues, with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) predominant in tumor tissues. Notably, the levels of aluminum (Al) and calcium (Ca) exhibited strong positive correlations with microplastics (MPs) content in tumors (p < 0.05). In this study, a novel approach was applied to assess the influences of m-MPs on tumor, through which we found that m-MPs accumulation could activate pro-tumorigenic pathways, leading to reduced overall survival (HR=1.59, p = 0.002) and disease-specific survival (HR=1.64, p = 0.01). Moreover, SYNE1 and RORA genes were identified as diagnostic/prognostic biomarkers for the assessment of m-MPs exposure in LUAD. Our findings revealed that m-MPs have the capacity for promoting metal ion deposition and oncogenic signaling, thereby involved in LUAD progression. This work also provides evidence using human tissue to demonstrate the association of m-MPs with lung cancer outcomes and advocate the development and application of therapeutic strategies targeting m-MPs.