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S. Mohapatra et al.
of antibiotics in water can cause antibiotic resistance in the natural microbial community and can make containment and combating of infectious diseases difficult
(Kumarasamy et al. 2010; Laxminarayan and Chaudhury 2016; Raghunath 2008;
Shim et al. 2019).
In spite of the analytical challenges many pharmaceuticals from various prescription classes, such as, analgesics, antibiotics, anti-epileptics, non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), β-blockers, lipid regulators, chemotherapeutics, and
steroid hormones have been detected in the aquatic environment (Heberer et al. 2002;
Mohapatra et al. 2018). Most pharmaceuticals of human and veterinary origin are
not entirely removed in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and thus end up in the
receiving surface waters (Singh et al. 2019). Surface water is one of the major sources
of potable water (Lin et al. 2006a). However, incomplete removal of pharmaceuticals in WWTPs makes surface waters, the major sink for pharmaceutical discharges.
Jiang et al. (2013) reported the presence of 80 types of pharmaceuticals, personal care
products, and endocrine disruptors in rivers, lakes, and sediments in 14 countries.
Antibiotics and NSAIDs were predominantly found in the aquatic environment. The
reported highest concentrations were in the order of μg/L in treated sewage in three
developed countries, i.e., UK, Canada, and Japan. However, their concentration was
only a few ng/L in surface water due to the substantial dilution effect. Hormones,
such as estrogens, plasticizers, such as nonylphenols (NPs), bisphenol A (BPA),
and octylphenols (OPs) are all endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) that are commonly present in surface water in many countries. The reported concentration of such
EDCs was in the range of several hundreds of ng/L. Compared to estrogens, BPA,
NPs, and OPs were more common in the water environment. These EDCs were also
detected in drinking water sources in the USA (Padhye et al. 2014) and Germany.
Depending on the physicochemical properties of pharmaceuticals, such as polarity, aromaticity, and distribution coefficient (K d ), they can persist and be transported over long distances downstream and can cause chronic effects on aquatic
life. Although the released pharmaceuticals undergo substantial dilution in surface
waters (Heberer 2002), they may conserve their parent structures or may get transformed into more active metabolites in the course of mobilization. In contrast, negligible dilution effects were observed for certain pharmaceuticals, such as, gemfibrozil
(17 μg/L), ibuprofen (37 μg/L), doxycycline (74 μg/L), ketoprofen (10 μg/L), and
acetaminophen (13 μg/L) in surface waters receiving treated and untreated sewage in
Costa Rica (Spongberg et al. 2011). Similarly, caffeine has been reported to be present
at a maximum concentration of 1.1 mg/L in surface water. Such a high concentration
of caffeine was possibly caused by discharges from coffee bean production facilities
located upstream (Spongberg et al. 2011). In addition to dilution/dispersion, there are
various other biotic and abiotic attenuation processes taking place simultaneously in
surface water. The combined action of these attenuation processes determines the fate
of pharmaceuticals in receiving water bodies. Natural attenuation processes include
sorption onto colloids, dissolved organic matter (DOM), and sediments (Osenbrück
et al. 2007; Kumari et al. 2017; Patel et al. 2019), biodegradation, chemical and
S. Mohapatra et al.
of antibiotics in water can cause antibiotic resistance in the natural microbial community and can make containment and combating of infectious diseases difficult
(Kumarasamy et al. 2010; Laxminarayan and Chaudhury 2016; Raghunath 2008;
Shim et al. 2019).
In spite of the analytical challenges many pharmaceuticals from various prescription classes, such as, analgesics, antibiotics, anti-epileptics, non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), β-blockers, lipid regulators, chemotherapeutics, and
steroid hormones have been detected in the aquatic environment (Heberer et al. 2002;
Mohapatra et al. 2018). Most pharmaceuticals of human and veterinary origin are
not entirely removed in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and thus end up in the
receiving surface waters (Singh et al. 2019). Surface water is one of the major sources
of potable water (Lin et al. 2006a). However, incomplete removal of pharmaceuticals in WWTPs makes surface waters, the major sink for pharmaceutical discharges.
Jiang et al. (2013) reported the presence of 80 types of pharmaceuticals, personal care
products, and endocrine disruptors in rivers, lakes, and sediments in 14 countries.
Antibiotics and NSAIDs were predominantly found in the aquatic environment. The
reported highest concentrations were in the order of μg/L in treated sewage in three
developed countries, i.e., UK, Canada, and Japan. However, their concentration was
only a few ng/L in surface water due to the substantial dilution effect. Hormones,
such as estrogens, plasticizers, such as nonylphenols (NPs), bisphenol A (BPA),
and octylphenols (OPs) are all endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) that are commonly present in surface water in many countries. The reported concentration of such
EDCs was in the range of several hundreds of ng/L. Compared to estrogens, BPA,
NPs, and OPs were more common in the water environment. These EDCs were also
detected in drinking water sources in the USA (Padhye et al. 2014) and Germany.
Depending on the physicochemical properties of pharmaceuticals, such as polarity, aromaticity, and distribution coefficient (K d ), they can persist and be transported over long distances downstream and can cause chronic effects on aquatic
life. Although the released pharmaceuticals undergo substantial dilution in surface
waters (Heberer 2002), they may conserve their parent structures or may get transformed into more active metabolites in the course of mobilization. In contrast, negligible dilution effects were observed for certain pharmaceuticals, such as, gemfibrozil
(17 μg/L), ibuprofen (37 μg/L), doxycycline (74 μg/L), ketoprofen (10 μg/L), and
acetaminophen (13 μg/L) in surface waters receiving treated and untreated sewage in
Costa Rica (Spongberg et al. 2011). Similarly, caffeine has been reported to be present
at a maximum concentration of 1.1 mg/L in surface water. Such a high concentration
of caffeine was possibly caused by discharges from coffee bean production facilities
located upstream (Spongberg et al. 2011). In addition to dilution/dispersion, there are
various other biotic and abiotic attenuation processes taking place simultaneously in
surface water. The combined action of these attenuation processes determines the fate
of pharmaceuticals in receiving water bodies. Natural attenuation processes include
sorption onto colloids, dissolved organic matter (DOM), and sediments (Osenbrück
et al. 2007; Kumari et al. 2017; Patel et al. 2019), biodegradation, chemical and