When Isabella Garry learned that microplastics can enter the human body through food, water and the air, she began looking for a solution that went beyond simply avoiding plastic.
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that → learn → plastic
The seventh-grader from Central Middle School in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, tested natural plant compounds in a laboratory-made stomach environment to see whether they could capture and remove microplastics.
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they → test → microplastics
According to her profile published by the Society for Science, Isabella found that okra, fenugreek and psyllium mucilages all removed microplastics from simulated gastric fluid within 60 minutes.
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mucilages → accord → minutes
Psyllium produced the strongest result, removing up to 93.3 percent at the highest concentration tested.
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Psyllium → produce → concentration
Her project has earned her a place among the 2026 Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge finalists, as per Society for Science.
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project → earn → Science
Read on to know more about Isabella's unique invention that can help save lives:
A concern that became a research project
Isabella’s interest in microplastics began four years ago when she discovered how widespread these tiny plastic particles are.
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particles → read → microplastics
They can be found in the things people eat, drink and wear, as well as in the air they breathe.
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they → find → air
At first, she believed the most practical answer was to avoid plastic wherever possible.
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answer → believe → plastic
That idea changed when she learned that microplastics had been detected in newborn babies.
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microplastics → change → babies
The discovery made her question whether prevention alone could protect people from exposure.
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prevention → make → exposure
“When I discovered that babies are being born with microplastics already in their bodies, I knew prevention alone couldn’t solve this,” Isabella said in her Society for Science profile.
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Isabella → discover → profile
Rather than treating the problem as too large to solve, she focused on one specific question.
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she → treat → question
Could natural substances made by plants form a gel that traps microplastics inside the body?
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that → make → body
Her project, titled 'A Novel Method for Microplastic Removal From Simulated Gastric Fluid Using Plant Mucilage Flocculants', explored that possibility in a controlled experiment.
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project → title → experiment
How Isabella faked digestion
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Isabella → fake → digestion
Isabella created an acidic liquid out of water, vinegar and salt to mimic some of the conditions in the stomach.
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Isabella → create → stomach
The pH of the mix was adjusted to between 1.8 and 2.2, which is close to the highly acidic environment of the stomach.
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which → adjust → stomach
She sanded plastic utensils into microplastics with a sander and collected them for her experiment.
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She → sand → experiment
Then she picked out three plants known to produce mucilage, a sticky substance that can turn gel-like when mixed with water.
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that → pick → water
For each test, Isabella placed 0.5 grams of microplastics into Mason jars filled with the simulated gastric fluid.
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Isabella → place → fluid
She added either a one percent or two percent concentration of the plant mucilage.
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She → add → mucilage
A separate jar containing only water and microplastics served as the control, allowing her to compare what happened without a plant-based substance.
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what → contain → substance
She swirled the jars every 15 minutes to simulate movement during digestion.
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She → swirl → digestion
She tested each mucilage six times so that she obtained repeated results rather than relying on a single trial.
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she → test → trial
After 60 minutes, she measured how much microplastic remained in the liquid to calculate how much had been removed.
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much → measure → liquid
Psyllium delivered the strongest result
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Psyllium → deliver → result
All three plant mucilages removed microplastics from the simulated stomach fluid within an hour.
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mucilages → remove → hour
However, their effectiveness varied depending on the plant and concentration.
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effectiveness → vary → plant
At the highest concentration tested, okra removed up to 81 percent of the microplastics.
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okra → test → microplastics
Fenugreek removed as much as 82.7 percent.
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Fenugreek → remove → percent
Psyllium performed best, removing up to 93.3 percent within 60 minutes.
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Psyllium → perform → minutes
The findings do not mean that eating psyllium can remove microplastics from a person’s body.
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eating → mean → body
Isabella’s experiment took place in simulated gastric fluid rather than inside a human digestive system.
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experiment → take → system
The results also do not establish that the trapped particles would safely leave the body or that the method would work under real biological conditions.
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method → establish → conditions
Instead, the project offers an early laboratory observation that could inspire further research.
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that → offer → research
Future studies would need to examine how these plant gels behave in more complex digestive environments and whether they can capture different types and sizes of microplastics without interfering with nutrients or normal digestion.
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they → need → nutrients
Nature as a source of solutions
Isabella’s choice of materials was influenced by her belief that nature can offer practical answers to modern problems.
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nature → influence → problems
She says her grandmother taught her to look to plants and the natural world for ideas, as per the report.
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grandmother → say → report
That outlook also shapes her future ambitions.
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outlook → shape → ambitions
Isabella would like to be an environmental scientist and would like to study further the effects of plastic pollution including microplastics and nanoplastics.
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Isabella → like → microplastics
…and 13 more, not listed.
The Aporia
