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LC-HRMS Screening, Risk Assessment, and Source Tracing of Neonicotinoid Insecticides and Their Transformation
Yingying Yang1, Qing Zhang1, Kaixuan Li1
1Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences of Ministry of Education, State Key Laboratory of Wetland Conservation and Restoration, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
Environmental Science & Technology
|March 12, 2026
Summary
Neonicotinoid insecticides (NEOs) and their transformation products (TPs) contaminate urban rivers, with many exceeding safety standards. These contaminants, originating from urban and agricultural sources, pose ecological risks requiring further investigation and regulation.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Chemistry
- Ecotoxicology
- Urban Ecology
Background:
- Neonicotinoid insecticides (NEOs) are widely used in urban areas, leading to their entry into freshwater systems.
- The occurrence and ecological risks of NEOs and their transformation products (TPs) in urban aquatic environments are not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a comprehensive workflow for identifying and quantifying NEOs and their TPs in urban river water.
- To assess the occurrence, priority, and sources of NEOs and TPs in coastal urban rivers.
Main Methods:
- Integrated target, suspect, and nontarget screening using diagnostic fragment searching and molecular networking.
- ToxPi scoring to rank NEOs and TPs based on detection frequency, intensity, persistence, mobility, and toxicity.
- Source tracing analysis to identify contamination origins.
Main Results:
- 104 TPs of 11 NEOs were identified in 35 coastal urban river water samples.
- Cumulative concentrations of NEOs and TPs ranged from 118 to 4755 ng/L.
- Five NEOs and seven TPs were identified as high-priority contaminants; several TPs showed higher priority than their parent compounds.
- Four NEOs exceeded Environmental Quality Standards in a significant percentage of samples.
- Urban application and agricultural activities were identified as primary sources.
Conclusions:
- Neonicotinoid contamination, including TPs, is prevalent in urban rivers and poses potential ecological risks.
- Transformation products of NEOs warrant significant attention due to their high priority and potential risks.
- Effective source-control regulations are needed to mitigate neonicotinoid contamination in freshwater and marine ecosystems.
