How Plastic Pollution Can Spread Viruses

Plastic pollution is a growing concern because it can impact our health. This can happen when tiny plastic particles enter our bodies, but also when plastic pollution spreads harmful viruses. Whether plastic can spread viruses depends on viral, plastic, and environmental characteristics. Viral characteristics include whether viruses clump together on the plastic surface, whether they have an envelope, and the surface charge. Plastic characteristics include roughness, hydrophobicity, and surface charge. Environmental characteristics include temperature, water salinity, and the amount of organic matter dissolved in the water. Interactions between viral, plastic, and environmental characteristics also play a role, as viruses with different characteristics can react differently to environmental conditions.