Microplastics Amplify Alzheimer’s Gene Risk

University of Rhode Island researchers exposed mice to polystyrene micro‑/nanoplastics for three weeks and found particles accumulated in the brain and produced Alzheimer's‑like behavioral changes, especially in animals engineered with the human APOE4 risk gene. The work links ubiquitous plastic exposure to cognitive decline via a specific gene–environment interaction rather than generic toxicity. While preclinical, it provides a testable pathway for how everyday plastics could raise neurodegeneration risk. — If microplastics exacerbate Alzheimer’s risk in genetically susceptible people, it strengthens the case for plastic regulation and targeted public‑health guidance.