Persistence of pharmaceuticals in effluent-dominated surface waters
Journal of Environmental Quality
|January 21, 2015
Summary
Pharmaceutical dissipation in rivers receiving wastewater varies greatly. Some drugs rapidly break down, while others persist over several kilometers, impacting aquatic ecosystems.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Chemistry
- Aquatic Toxicology
- Water Quality Management
Background:
- Pharmaceuticals enter surface waters via wastewater effluents.
- Understanding pharmaceutical fate is crucial for aquatic ecosystem health.
- Limited data exists on cumulative dissipation rates in effluent-dominated waters.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the dissipation rates of pharmaceutical compounds in streams receiving municipal wastewater.
- To assess the variability in pharmaceutical persistence downstream of effluent discharge points.
Main Methods:
- Utilized passive samplers to collect water samples from two streams.
- Analyzed samples for the presence of seventeen pharmaceutical compounds.
- Calculated first-order dissipation rates for detected pharmaceuticals.
Main Results:
- Seventeen pharmaceuticals were detected in the studied streams.
- Dissipation rates ranged from 0.03 to -0.02 h⁻¹.
- Some pharmaceuticals were conserved, while others dissipated rapidly within kilometers.
Conclusions:
- Pharmaceutical dissipation in effluent-dominated streams is highly variable.
- The persistence of pharmaceuticals can significantly impact downstream water quality.
- Further research is needed to understand the long-term effects of persistent pharmaceuticals.
More Related Videos
16:02Demonstration of the Sequence Alignment to Predict Across Species Susceptibility Tool for Rapid Assessment of Protein Conservation
Published on: February 10, 2023
3.5K
06:35Implementation of a Hyperbolic Vortex Plasma Reactor for the Removal of Micropollutants in Water
Published on: July 25, 2025
1.4K
Related Concept Videos
01:20Factors Affecting Dissolution: Drug Permeability, Stability and Stereochemistry
698
Orally administered drugs primarily enter the systemic circulation via passive diffusion through the intestinal membranes. The drug's absorption is influenced by drug stability in the gastrointestinal GI tract, membrane permeability, the surface area available for absorption, luminal drug concentration, and residence time in the lumen. Drug permeability can be enhanced by adjusting the lipophilicity, polarity, or molecular size of the drug, promoting its passive transport across intestinal...
698
01:21Drug Distribution: Tissue Binding
4.4K
Upon entering the systemic circulation, drugs can distribute into the interstitial and intracellular fluid of various tissue cells. This distribution is facilitated by the binding of drugs to different cellular components within tissues, which may lead to drug accumulation in specific areas. Drugs bound to tissue components serve as reservoirs that release free drugs back into the system, prolonging the drug's overall action. However, this accumulation can also result in local toxicity.
For...
For...
4.4K
01:17Hepatic Drug Excretion: Enterohepatic Cycling
3.4K
Enterohepatic cycling involves the active secretion of drugs and their metabolites into the bile via transporters in the canalicular membrane of hepatocytes. This secretion is an integral part of the digestive process, releasing these substances into the gastrointestinal (GI) tract.
Post-release drugs and metabolites can be reabsorbed into the body from the intestine. For conjugated metabolites like glucuronides, reabsorption requires enzymatic hydrolysis by intestinal microflora. This...
Post-release drugs and metabolites can be reabsorbed into the body from the intestine. For conjugated metabolites like glucuronides, reabsorption requires enzymatic hydrolysis by intestinal microflora. This...
3.4K
01:27Factors Influencing Drug Absorption: Drug Dissolution
1.9K
The pharmacokinetic journey of drugs from solid oral dosage forms into systemic circulation is multifaceted. It begins with disintegration, a prerequisite ensuring a solid dosage form's subdivision into minute particles. Dissolution occurs next as these granulated entities solubilize in gastrointestinal fluids. This solubilization is crucial for the succeeding stage, permeation, which describes the traversal of the drug across the intestinal membrane and its subsequent entry into the blood...
1.9K
01:23Drug Elimination: Non-Renal Routes
3.6K
The liver plays a pivotal role in eliminating drugs and their metabolites, primarily through a process known as biliary excretion. This process involves the hepatocytes, the primary cells in the liver that generate bile. A range of transporters actively expels polar drugs or hydrophilic drug metabolites into the bile, which transports the drugs and metabolites into the small intestine. From here, they are eventually expelled from the body through feces. In some instances, the original drug or a...
3.6K
01:28Microbial Bioremediation of Pesticides
68
Pesticides often feature structurally complex chemical architectures, incorporating halogen groups and multiple aromatic rings. These characteristics confer high chemical stability, rendering many pesticides resistant to natural degradation processes. This resistance poses significant environmental concerns, as persistent pesticide residues can accumulate in ecosystems and affect non-target organisms.Despite the inherent stability of many pesticides, certain microorganisms possess the metabolic...
68