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Davenport R, Curtis‐Jackson P, Dalkmann P, Davies J, Fenner K, Hand L, McDonough K, Ott A, Ortega‐Calvo JJ, Parsons JR, Schäffer A, Sweetlove C, Trapp S, Wang N, Redman A. Scientific concepts and methods for moving persistence assessments into the 21st century. INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT 2022; 18:1454-1487. [PMID: 34989108 PMCID: PMC9790601 DOI: 10.1002/ieam.4575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2021] [Revised: 09/29/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
The evaluation of a chemical substance's persistence is key to understanding its environmental fate, exposure concentration, and, ultimately, environmental risk. Traditional biodegradation test methods were developed many years ago for soluble, nonvolatile, single-constituent test substances, which do not represent the wide range of manufactured chemical substances. In addition, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) screening and simulation test methods do not fully reflect the environmental conditions into which substances are released and, therefore, estimates of chemical degradation half-lives can be very uncertain and may misrepresent real environmental processes. In this paper, we address the challenges and limitations facing current test methods and the scientific advances that are helping to both understand and provide solutions to them. Some of these advancements include the following: (1) robust methods that provide a deeper understanding of microbial composition, diversity, and abundance to ensure consistency and/or interpret variability between tests; (2) benchmarking tools and reference substances that aid in persistence evaluations through comparison against substances with well-quantified degradation profiles; (3) analytical methods that allow quantification for parent and metabolites at environmentally relevant concentrations, and inform on test substance bioavailability, biochemical pathways, rates of primary versus overall degradation, and rates of metabolite formation and decay; (4) modeling tools that predict the likelihood of microbial biotransformation, as well as biochemical pathways; and (5) modeling approaches that allow for derivation of more generally applicable biotransformation rate constants, by accounting for physical and/or chemical processes and test system design when evaluating test data. We also identify that, while such advancements could improve the certainty and accuracy of persistence assessments, the mechanisms and processes by which they are translated into regulatory practice and development of new OECD test guidelines need improving and accelerating. Where uncertainty remains, holistic weight of evidence approaches may be required to accurately assess the persistence of chemicals. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022;18:1454-1487. © 2022 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC).
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Philipp Dalkmann
- Bayer AG, Crop Science Division, Environmental SafetyMonheimGermany
| | | | - Kathrin Fenner
- Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and TechnologyDübendorfSwitzerland
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of ZürichZürichSwitzerland
| | - Laurence Hand
- Syngenta, Product Safety, Jealott's Hill International Research CentreBracknellUK
| | | | - Amelie Ott
- School of EngineeringNewcastle UniversityNewcastle upon TyneUK
- European Centre for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals (ECETOC)BrusselsBelgium
| | - Jose Julio Ortega‐Calvo
- Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de SevillaConsejo Superior de Investigaciones CientíficasSevillaSpain
| | - John R. Parsons
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem DynamicsUniversity of AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | - Andreas Schäffer
- RWTH Aachen University, Institute for Environmental ResearchAachenGermany
| | - Cyril Sweetlove
- L'Oréal Research & InnovationEnvironmental Research DepartmentAulnay‐sous‐BoisFrance
| | - Stefan Trapp
- Department of Environmental EngineeringTechnical University of DenmarkBygningstorvetLyngbyDenmark
| | - Neil Wang
- Total Marketing & ServicesParis la DéfenseFrance
| | - Aaron Redman
- ExxonMobil Petroleum and ChemicalMachelenBelgium
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Jouanneau S, Grangé E, Durand MJ, Thouand G. Rapid BOD assessment with a microbial array coupled to a neural machine learning system. WATER RESEARCH 2019; 166:115079. [PMID: 31539666 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2019.115079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2019] [Revised: 09/04/2019] [Accepted: 09/09/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The domestic usage of water generates approximately 310 km3 of wastewater worldwide (2015, AQUASTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nations). This sewage contains an important organic load due to the use of this water; this organic load is characterized using a standard method, namely, the biological oxygen demand measurement (BOD5). The BOD5 provides information about the biodegradable organic load (standard ISO 5815). However, this measurement protocol is very time-consuming (5 days) and may produce variability in approximately 20% of results mainly due to variation in the environmental inocula. To remedy these limitations, this work proposes an innovative concept relying on the implementation of a set of rigorously selected bacterial strains. This publication depicts the different steps used in this study, from bio-indicator selection to validation with real wastewater samples. The results obtained in the final step show a strong correlation between the developed approach and the reference method (ISO 5815) with a correlation rate of approximately 0.9. In addition, the optimization of the experimental conditions and the use of controlled strains (8 selected strains) allow significant reduction in the duration of the BOD5 analysis, with only 3 h required for the proposed method versus 5 days for the reference method. This technological breakthrough should simplify the monitoring of wastewater treatment plants and provide quicker, easier and more coherent control in terms of the treatment time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sulivan Jouanneau
- University of Nantes, UMR CNRS 6144 GEPEA, 18 Boulevard Gaston Defferre, 85035, La Roche sur Yon, France.
| | - Emilie Grangé
- University of Nantes, UMR CNRS 6144 GEPEA, 18 Boulevard Gaston Defferre, 85035, La Roche sur Yon, France
| | - Marie-José Durand
- University of Nantes, UMR CNRS 6144 GEPEA, 18 Boulevard Gaston Defferre, 85035, La Roche sur Yon, France
| | - Gérald Thouand
- University of Nantes, UMR CNRS 6144 GEPEA, 18 Boulevard Gaston Defferre, 85035, La Roche sur Yon, France.
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Ott A, Martin TJ, Whale GF, Snape JR, Rowles B, Galay-Burgos M, Davenport RJ. Improving the biodegradability in seawater test (OECD 306). THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2019; 666:399-404. [PMID: 30802655 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.02.167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2018] [Revised: 02/08/2019] [Accepted: 02/11/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Growth and extensive urbanisation of the human population has been accompanied by increased manufacture and use of chemical compounds. To classify the fate and behaviour of these compounds in the environment, a series of international standardised biodegradation screening tests (BSTs) were developed over 30 years ago. In recent years, regulatory emphasis (e.g. REACH) has shifted from measuring biodegradation towards prioritisations based on chemical persistence. In their current guise, BSTs are ineffective as screens for persistence. The marine BST OECD 306 in particular is prone to high levels of variation and produces a large number of fails, many of which can be considered false negatives. An ECETOC funded two-day workshop of academia, industry and regulatory bodies was held in 2015 to discuss improvements to the marine BSTs based on previous research findings from the Cefic LRI ECO11 project and other foregoing studies. During this workshop, methodological improvements to the OECD 306 test were discussed, in addition to clarifying guidance on testing and interpretation of results obtained from marine BSTs (such as pass criteria, lag phases, freshwater read across and complex substances). Methodologically: (i) increasing bacterial cell concentrations to better represent the bacterial diversity inherent in the sampled environments; and (ii) increasing test durations to investigate extended lag phases observed in marine assessments, were recommended to be validated in a multi-institutional ring test.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amelie Ott
- Newcastle University, School of Engineering, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 7RU, UK.
| | - Timothy J Martin
- Newcastle University, School of Engineering, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 7RU, UK.
| | - Graham F Whale
- Shell International Ltd., Risk Science Team, 4 York road, London SE1 7NA, UK.
| | - Jason R Snape
- Newcastle University, School of Engineering, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 7RU, UK; AstraZeneca Global Environment, Mereside, Alderley Park, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK10 4TG, UK; School of Life Sciences, Gibbet Hill Campus, The University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK.
| | - Bob Rowles
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Pakefield Road, Lowestoft NR33 0HT, UK.
| | - Malyka Galay-Burgos
- European Centre for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals (ECETOC), Avenue Edmond Van Nieuwenhuyse 2, 1160 Auderghem, Belgium.
| | - Russell J Davenport
- Newcastle University, School of Engineering, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 7RU, UK.
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Birch H, Hammershøj R, Mayer P. Determining Biodegradation Kinetics of Hydrocarbons at Low Concentrations: Covering 5 and 9 Orders of Magnitude of K ow and K aw. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2018; 52:2143-2151. [PMID: 29376649 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.7b05624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
A partitioning-based experimental platform was developed and applied to determine primary biodegradation kinetics of 53 hydrocarbons at ng/L to μg/L concentrations covering C8-C20, 11 structural classes, and several orders of magnitude in hydrophobicity and volatility: (1) Passive dosing from a loaded silicone donor was used to set the concentration of each hydrocarbon in mixture stock solutions; (2) these solutions were combined with environmental water samples in gastight auto sampler vials for 1-100 days incubation, and (3) automated solid phase microextraction (SPME) coupled to GC-MS was applied directly on these test systems for measuring primary biodegradation relative to abiotic controls. First order biodegradation kinetics were obtained for 40 hydrocarbons in activated sludge filtrate, 18 in seawater, and 21 in lake water. Water phase half-lives in seawater and lake water were poorly related to hydrophobicity and volatility but were, with a few exceptions, within a factor of 10 or shorter than BioHCwin predictions. The most persistent hydrocarbons, 1,1,4,4,6-pentamethyldecalin, perhydropyrene, 1,2,3,6,7,8-hexahydropyrene, and 2,2,4,4,6,8,8-heptamethylnonane, showed limited or inconsistent degradation in all three environmental media. This biodegradation approach can cover a large chemical space at low substrate concentrations, which makes it highly suited for optimizing predictive models for environmental biodegradation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heidi Birch
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark , Bygningstorvet, Building 115, 2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Rikke Hammershøj
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark , Bygningstorvet, Building 115, 2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Philipp Mayer
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark , Bygningstorvet, Building 115, 2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
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Martin TJ, Goodhead AK, Acharya K, Head IM, Snape JR, Davenport RJ. High Throughput Biodegradation-Screening Test To Prioritize and Evaluate Chemical Biodegradability. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2017; 51:7236-7244. [PMID: 28485927 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.7b00806] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Comprehensive assessment of environmental biodegradability of pollutants is limited by the use of low throughput systems. These are epitomized by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Ready Biodegradability Tests (RBTs), where one sample from an environment may be used to assess a chemical's ability to readily biodegrade or persist universally in that environment. This neglects the considerable spatial and temporal microbial variation inherent in any environment. Inaccurate designations of biodegradability or persistence can occur as a result. RBTs are central in assessing the biodegradation fate of chemicals and inferring exposure concentrations in environmental risk assessments. We developed a colorimetric assay for the reliable quantification of suitable aromatic compounds in a high throughput biodegradation screening test (HT-BST). The HT-BST accurately differentiated and prioritized a range of structurally diverse aromatic compounds on the basis of their assigned relative biodegradabilities and quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) model outputs. Approximately 20 000 individual biodegradation tests were performed, returning analogous results to conventional RBTs. The effect of substituent group structure and position on biodegradation potential demonstrated a significant correlation (P < 0.05) with Hammett's constant for substituents on position 3 of the phenol ring. The HT-BST may facilitate the rapid screening of 100 000 chemicals reportedly manufactured in Europe and reduce the need for higher-tier fate and effects tests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy J Martin
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Newcastle University , Cassie Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew K Goodhead
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Newcastle University , Cassie Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Kishor Acharya
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Newcastle University , Cassie Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Ian M Head
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Newcastle University , Cassie Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Jason R Snape
- AstraZeneca , Mereside, Alderley Park, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK10 4TG, United Kingdom
- School of Life Sciences, The University of Warwick , Gibbet Hill Campus, Coventry CV4 7AL, United Kingdom
| | - Russell J Davenport
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Newcastle University , Cassie Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
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Martin TJ, Snape JR, Bartram A, Robson A, Acharya K, Davenport RJ. Environmentally Relevant Inoculum Concentrations Improve the Reliability of Persistent Assessments in Biodegradation Screening Tests. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2017; 51:3065-3073. [PMID: 28125206 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.6b05717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Standard OECD biodegradation screening tests (BSTs) have not evolved at the same rate as regulatory concerns, which now place an increased emphasis on environmental persistence. Consequently, many chemicals are falsely assigned as being potentially persistent based on results from BSTs. The present study increased test duration and increased inoculum concentrations to more environmentally relevant levels to assess their impact on biodegradation outcome and intratest replicate variability for chemicals with known environmental persistence. Chemicals were assigned to potential persistence categories based on existing degradation data. These more environmentally relevant BSTs (erBSTs) improved the reliability of persistence assignment by reducing the high variability associated with these tests and the occurrence of failures at low inoculum concentrations due to the exclusion of specific degraders. Environmental fate was determined using a reference set of 14C-labeled compounds with a range of potential environmental persistences, and full mass balance data were collated. The erBST correctly assigned five reference chemicals of known biodegradabilities to their appropriate persistence category in contrast to a standard OECD Ready Biodegradation Test (RBTs, P < 0.05). The erBST was significantly more reproducible than an OECD RBT (ANOVA, P < 0.05), with more consistent rates and extent of biodegradation observed in the erBST.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy J Martin
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Cassie Building, Newcastle University , Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Jason R Snape
- AstraZeneca Global Environment , Mereside, Alderley Park, Macclesfield, Cheshire, SK10 4TG, United Kingdom
| | - Abigail Bartram
- AstraZeneca Global Environment , Mereside, Alderley Park, Macclesfield, Cheshire, SK10 4TG, United Kingdom
| | - Aidan Robson
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Cassie Building, Newcastle University , Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Kishor Acharya
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Cassie Building, Newcastle University , Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Russell J Davenport
- School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Cassie Building, Newcastle University , Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
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François B, Armand M, Marie-José D, Thouand G. From laboratory to environmental conditions: a new approach for chemical's biodegradability assessment. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2016; 23:18684-93. [PMID: 27312897 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-7062-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2015] [Accepted: 06/08/2016] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
With thousands of organic chemicals released every day into our environment, Europe and other continents are confronted with increased risk of health and environmental problems. Even if a strict regulation such as REgistration, Authorization and restriction of CHemicals (REACH) is imposed and followed by industry to ensure that they prove the harmlessness of their substances, not all testing procedures are designed to cope with the complexity of the environment. This is especially true for the evaluation of persistence through biodegradability assessment guidelines. Our new approach has been to adapt "in the lab" biodegradability assessment to the environmental conditions and model the probability for a biodegradation test to be positive in the form of a logistic function of both the temperature and the viable cell density. Here, a proof of this new concept is proposed with the establishment of tri-dimensional biodegradability profiles of six chemicals (sodium benzoate, 4-nitrophenol, diethylene glycol, 2,4,5-trichlorophenol, atrazine, and glyphosate) between 4 to 30 °C and 10(4) to 10(8) cells ml(-1) as can be found in environmental compartments in time and space. The results show a significant increase of the predictive power of existing screening lab-scale tests designed for soluble substances. This strategy can be complementary to those current testing strategies with the creation of new indicators to quantify environmental persistence using lab-scale tests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brillet François
- Université de Nantes, UMR CNRS 6144 GEPEA, IUT Génie Biologique, La Roche sur Yon, France
| | - Maul Armand
- Université de Lorraine, LIEC-UMR CNRS, 7360, Metz, France
| | - Durand Marie-José
- Université de Nantes, UMR CNRS 6144 GEPEA, IUT Génie Biologique, La Roche sur Yon, France
| | - Gérald Thouand
- Université de Nantes, UMR CNRS 6144 GEPEA, IUT Génie Biologique, La Roche sur Yon, France.
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