1 Introduction
The emerging contaminants (EC), such as antibiotics, pharmaceuticals, personal care
products, hormones, and artificial sweeteners, among others, are recognized as new
classes of water contaminants due to their proven or potential adverse effects on
aquatic ecosystems and human health. Besides, its ubiquitous detection in the
aquatic environment around the world raises a great public concern [1, 2].
According to data reported in the literature [2], the emerging pollutants can be
classified into various families, among which are:
1. Antibiotics
2. Antifungal/antimicrobial agents
3. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
4. Anticonvulsants/antidepressants
5. Artificial sweeteners
6. β-adrenergic blocking agents
7. Plasticizers
8. Steroidal estrogens (EDCs; endocrine disruptor compounds)
9. X-ray contrast medium
10. UV filters
It has been reported that the most important anthropogenic compounds are
pharmaceuticals (diclofenac, ibuprofen, naproxen, ofloxacin, acetaminophen, progesterone, ranitidine, and testosterone), which nowadays are recognized as a threat
for aquatic ecosystems, agricultural products or pesticides (atrazine, carbendazim,
fipronil), narcotics and illegal drugs (amphetamines, cocaine, and benzoylecgonine),
food industry derivatives (bisphenol A and caffeine), and personal care products
(triclosan and other related surfactants) [3, 4].
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) belong to most used pharmaceuticals in the human and veterinary medicine, and their widespread consumption
all over the world has led to their ubiquitous occurrence in water environment
including large river systems [5]. NSAIDs are world widely reported as one of the
most dominant and frequently detected groups in environmental matrices including
wastewater, surface water, suspended solids, sediments, groundwater, and even
drinking water. Among the emerging contaminants, the top 5 most frequently
studied NSAIDs included ibuprofen, diclofenac, naproxen, acetaminophen, and
ketoprofen [6, 7].
Recently, these compounds have been recognized to constitute a health risk for
aquatic ecosystems, affecting not only fish tissues (kidney, brain, liver, gill, muscle),
but have several effects at different levels, for instance, bioaccumulation, trophic
chains, and biomagnification that can be the cause of cellular toxicity, apoptosis,
genotoxicity, and alterations in sex ratios in human beings [3, 8].
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs remaining in the environment are a kind of
priority hazard substances, due, among others reported cases, to a notable incident in
which diclofenac residues caused the loss of more than 99% of vultures across the
42
A. Mejía-García et al.
The emerging contaminants (EC), such as antibiotics, pharmaceuticals, personal care
products, hormones, and artificial sweeteners, among others, are recognized as new
classes of water contaminants due to their proven or potential adverse effects on
aquatic ecosystems and human health. Besides, its ubiquitous detection in the
aquatic environment around the world raises a great public concern [1, 2].
According to data reported in the literature [2], the emerging pollutants can be
classified into various families, among which are:
1. Antibiotics
2. Antifungal/antimicrobial agents
3. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
4. Anticonvulsants/antidepressants
5. Artificial sweeteners
6. β-adrenergic blocking agents
7. Plasticizers
8. Steroidal estrogens (EDCs; endocrine disruptor compounds)
9. X-ray contrast medium
10. UV filters
It has been reported that the most important anthropogenic compounds are
pharmaceuticals (diclofenac, ibuprofen, naproxen, ofloxacin, acetaminophen, progesterone, ranitidine, and testosterone), which nowadays are recognized as a threat
for aquatic ecosystems, agricultural products or pesticides (atrazine, carbendazim,
fipronil), narcotics and illegal drugs (amphetamines, cocaine, and benzoylecgonine),
food industry derivatives (bisphenol A and caffeine), and personal care products
(triclosan and other related surfactants) [3, 4].
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) belong to most used pharmaceuticals in the human and veterinary medicine, and their widespread consumption
all over the world has led to their ubiquitous occurrence in water environment
including large river systems [5]. NSAIDs are world widely reported as one of the
most dominant and frequently detected groups in environmental matrices including
wastewater, surface water, suspended solids, sediments, groundwater, and even
drinking water. Among the emerging contaminants, the top 5 most frequently
studied NSAIDs included ibuprofen, diclofenac, naproxen, acetaminophen, and
ketoprofen [6, 7].
Recently, these compounds have been recognized to constitute a health risk for
aquatic ecosystems, affecting not only fish tissues (kidney, brain, liver, gill, muscle),
but have several effects at different levels, for instance, bioaccumulation, trophic
chains, and biomagnification that can be the cause of cellular toxicity, apoptosis,
genotoxicity, and alterations in sex ratios in human beings [3, 8].
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs remaining in the environment are a kind of
priority hazard substances, due, among others reported cases, to a notable incident in
which diclofenac residues caused the loss of more than 99% of vultures across the
42
A. Mejía-García et al.