Ecotoxicity of losartan potassium in aquatic organisms of different trophic levels

Computational modeling (in silico) methods combined with ecotoxicological experiments (in vivo) to predict the environmental risks of an antihistamine drug (loratadine)

This study employed computational modeling (in silico) methods, combined with ecotoxicological experiments (in vivo) to predict the persistence/biodegradability, bioaccumulation, mobility, and ecological risks of an antihistamine drug (Loratadine: LOR) in the aquatic compartment. To achieve these goals, four endpoints of the LOR were obtained from different open-source computational tools, namely: (i) "STP total removal"; (ii) Predicted ready biodegradability; (iii) Octanol-water partition coefficient (KOW); and (iv) Soil organic adsorption coefficient (KOC). Moreover, acute and chronic, ecotoxicological assays using non-target freshwater organisms of different trophic levels (namely, algae Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata; microcrustaceans Daphnia similis and Ceriodaphnia dubia; and fish Danio rerio), were used to predict the ecological risks of LOR. The main results showed that LOR: (i) is considered persistent (after a weight-of-evidence assessment) and highly resistant to biodegradation; (ii) is hydrophobic (LOG KOW = 5.20), immobile (LOG KOC = 5.63), and thus, it can potentially bioaccumulate and/or can cause numerous deleterious effects in aquatic species; and (iii) after ecotoxicological evaluation is considered "toxic" and/or "highly toxic" to the three trophic levels tested. Moreover, both the ecotoxicological assays and risk assessment (RQ), showed that LOR is more harmful for the crustaceans (RQcrustaceans = moderate to high risks) than for algae and fish. Ultimately, this study reinforces the ecological concern due to the indiscriminate disposal of this antihistamine drug in worldwide aquatic ecosystems.

Assessing the pharmaceutical residues as hotspots of the main rivers of Catalonia, Spain

The global increase in pharmaceutical consumption, driven by factors such as aging populations and chronic diseases, has raised concerns regarding the environmental impact of pharmaceutical contaminants. Europe, and more specifically Catalonia (Spain), exhibits high pharmaceutical consumption rates, potentially exacerbating environmental contamination. Pharmaceuticals enter rivers through various pathways, persisting after wastewater treatment plants and posing risks to aquatic organisms and human health. Llobregat and Besòs Rivers in Catalonia, crucial water sources, demonstrate detectable pharmaceutical levels, necessitating comprehensive analysis. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) proves effective in detecting pharmaceutical residues, facilitating their risk assessment. This paper reviews the occurrence, fate, and risks associated with 78 pharmaceuticals and metabolite in Llobregat and Besòs Rivers, using LC-MS/MS for analysis. Understanding pharmaceutical impacts on Catalonian River ecosystems is essential for developing mitigation strategies.

Green synthesis of carbon nanotubes functionalized with iron nanoparticles and coffee husk biomass for efficient removal of losartan and diclofenac: Adsorption kinetics and ANN modeling studies

The presence of emerging contaminants in wastewater poses a global environmental challenge, requiring the development of innovative materials or methods for their treatment. This study focused on the production of green functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and using them in the adsorption of the pharmaceuticals Losartan (LOS) and Diclofenac (DIC). The efficiency of the methodology was verified by characterization techniques. Elemental composition analysis indicated a significant increase in the iron content after the green functionalization, proving the effectiveness of the method. Thermogravimetric analysis showed similar thermal degradation profiles for pristine CNTs and functionalized CNTs, indicating better post-functionalization thermal stability. BET analysis revealed mesoporous characteristics of CNTs, with increased surface area and pore volumes after functionalization. X-Ray diffraction confirmed the preservation of the lattice structure of the CNTs post-functionalization and post-adsorption, with changes in peak broadening suggesting surface modifications. LOS and DIC adsorption were evaluated via kinetic studies at four different concentrations (0.1-0.4 mmol/L) that were best represented by the pseudo-second order model, suggesting chemisorption mechanisms, with faster and higher uptakes for DIC (0.084-0.261 mmol/g; teq = 5 min) when compared to LOS (0.058-0.235 mmol/g; teq = 20 min). The curves were also studied via artificial neural networks (ANN) and revealed that the best ANN architecture for representing the experimental data is a network with [3 5 5 2] neurons trained using the Bayesian-Regularization algorithm and the Log-sigmoid (hidden layers) and Linear (output layer) transfer functions. The desorption study showed that CaCl2 had better performance in CNT regeneration, reaching its removal capacity above 50% up to 3 cycles, for both pharmaceuticals. These findings reveal the potential of the developed material as a promising adsorbent for targeted removal of pollutants, contributing to advances in the remediation of emerging contaminants and the application of artificial intelligence in adsorption research.

The use of integrative tools and multiple models for aquatic environmental quality assessment: a case study of the Mirim Lagoon, Southern Brazil

This study performed toxicity assays with microalgae, microcrustaceans, and fish as well as evaluated biochemical and behavioral biomarkers in fish and microcrustaceans to assess the quality of the surface water of Mirim Lagoon, which belongs to one of the largest hydrographic basins in the world, located in southern Brazil. Three distinct sampling periods were chosen (January, March, and June 2022) based on the rice plantation dynamics which is the main activity surrounding the lagoon. In January, the plantation is irrigated; in March, the water is drained into the Mirim Lagoon, and July is the off-season. Concerning toxicity tests, there was significant inhibition in microalgae growth when exposed to water collected in March, but no mortality was observed for Ceriodaphia dubia, Daphnia magna, and Danio rerio. Regarding biomarkers, behavioral variables contributed more to the higher values of the Integrated Biomarker Response (IBR) index for both D. magna and D. rerio, in March. The Redundancy Analysis (RDA) indicated a correlation between the biomarkers for both organisms and abiotic parameters, mainly nutrients (total phosphorus and total nitrogen), thermotolerant coliforms, total solids, and turbidity. Spatially, there was no difference during monitoring, but the most significant ecotoxicological effects were observed in March. Multivariate analysis and the IBR index proved to be useful tools for monitoring of water bodies such as Mirim Lagoon.

Occurrence, ecological risk assessment and prioritization of pharmaceuticals and abuse drugs in estuarine waters along the São Paulo coast, Brazil

The pollution of the surface waters by pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) has attracted worldwide attention, but data regarding their occurrence and potential risks for the aquatic biota on tropical coastal rivers of South America are still scarce. In this context, the occurrence and the preliminary ecological risk assessment of eleven pharmaceuticals of various therapeutic classes (including cocaine and its primary metabolite, benzoylecgonine) were investigated, for the first time, in five rivers of São Paulo, southeast Brazil, covering a coastline of about 140 km, namely Perequê River, Itinga River, Mongaguá River, Itanhaém River and Guaraú River. Although these five rivers are born in well-preserved areas of the Atlantic rainforest biome, on its way to sea and when they cross the urban perimeter, they receive untreated sewage discharges containing a complex mixture of contaminants. In addition, a "persistence, bioaccumulation and toxicity" (PBT) approach allowed to pre-select the priority PPCPs to be monitored in this coastline. Identification of several PPCPs in the samples was done using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Ten PPCPs were successfully quantified in all five rivers, namely caffeine (9.00-560.00 ng/L), acetaminophen ( Collapse

Key Words

• Coastal rivers
• Domestic sewage
• Illicit drugs
• Pharmaceuticals
• Prioritization
• Risk assessment
• Subtropical ecosystem

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MESH Headings

• Environmental Monitoring/methods
• Water Pollutants, Chemical/analysis
• Chromatography, Liquid
• Caffeine/analysis
• Brazil
• Diclofenac
• Ecosystem
• Atenolol
• Orphenadrine/analysis
• Acetaminophen
• Losartan
• Furosemide
• Tandem Mass Spectrometry
• Rivers/chemistry
• Illicit Drugs/analysis
• Cocaine/analysis
• Risk Assessment
• Carbamazepine/analysis
• Pharmaceutical Preparations

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Affiliation(s)

Vinicius Roveri Universidade Metropolitana de Santos (UNIMES), Avenida Conselheiro Nébias, 536 - Encruzilhada, 11045-002, Santos, São Paulo, Brazil Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental (CIIMAR/CIMAR), Avenida General Norton de Matos S/N, 4450-208, Matosinhos, Portugal
Luciana Lopes Guimarães Laboratório de Pesquisa em Produtos Naturais, Universidade Santa Cecília, Rua Cesário Mota 8, F83A, 11045-040 Santos, São Paulo, Brazil
Walber Toma Laboratório de Pesquisa em Produtos Naturais, Universidade Santa Cecília, Rua Cesário Mota 8, F83A, 11045-040 Santos, São Paulo, Brazil
Alberto Teodorico Correia Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental (CIIMAR/CIMAR), Avenida General Norton de Matos S/N, 4450-208, Matosinhos, Portugal. Faculdade de Ciências da Saúde da Universidade Fernando Pessoa (FCS-UFP), Rua Carlos da Maia 296, 4200-150, Porto, Portugal. Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar da Universidade do Porto (ICBAS-UP), Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira 228, 4050-313, Porto, Portugal.

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Solution blow spinning polysulfone-Aliquat 336 nanofibers: synthesis, characterization, and application for the extraction and preconcentration of losartan from aqueous solutions

Nanofibers are materials used in a wide range of applications due to their unique physicochemical properties. As an alternative to the most common method of its manufacturing (electrospinning) blow spinning has been used since it has greater production efficiency and simplicity. A wide variety of polymers is used for its preparation and can be modified to improve the interaction and selectivity toward specific analytes. Thereby nanofibers have been used for the extraction or removal of organic compounds such as drugs but there are still few reports of drug extractions like losartan. In this work polysulfone-Aliquat 336 nanofibers were prepared using the blow spinning method to extract and preconcentrate losartan. The studies showed that Aliquat 336 incorporation significantly improve the extraction of losartan with polysulfone fibers. Adsorption process was thermodynamically favorable with an adsorption capacity of 15.45 mg·g−1. Thus, it was possible to extract more than 92% of initial losartan using 10 mg of polysulfone-Aliquat 336 fibers (9 and 3.5% (w/v)), at pH 6 from deionized water and synthetic wastewater. Finally, losartan preconcentration was evaluated to facilitate its quantification using ultraviolet–visible spectrometry (UV-Vis), which allowed the determination of this drug at concentrations below the detection limit.