Phytotoxicity evaluation of five pharmaceutical pollutants detected in surface water on germination and growth of cultivated and spontaneous plants

Abstract

The phytotoxicity of 5 pharmaceuticals detected in Italian rivers, atorvastatin (7-[2-(4-fluorophenyl)-3-phenyl-4-(phenylcarbamoyl)-5-propan-2-yl-pyrrol-1-yl]-3,5-dihydroxy-heptanoic acid), gemfibrozil (5-(2,5-dimethylphenoxy)-2,2-dimethyl-pentanoic acid), tamoxifene (2-[4-(1,2-diphenylbut-1-enyl)phenoxy]-N,N-dimethyl-ethanamine), ethinyl estradiol (17-ethynyl-13-methyl-7,8,9,11, 12,13,14,15,16,17-decahydro-6H-cyclopenta[a]phenanthrene-3,17-diol) and sildenafil (methyl-9-propyl-2,4,7,8-tetrazabicyclo[4.3.0] nona-3,8,10-trien-5-one), has been assessed in a laboratory model. The treatment system consists of three main successive sections. The first one includes the phytotoxic evaluation of the single compounds on crops, Lactuca sativa (lettuce), Dacus carota subsp. sativa (carrot), and Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato), until the 10(-9) M, concentration lower then the environmental amounts. The second section includes the phytotoxicity assessment of all the selected chemicals on wild species, Avena fatua (wild oats), Amaranthus retroflexus (redroot pigweed), Lolium perenne (perennial ryegrass), Taraxacum officinale (common dandelion), and Chenopodium album (lambsquarter), at the same concentration as previously used. The third section of the procedure includes the evaluation of the effects of the five pharmaceuticals, at 1 microM and 1 nM environmental concentrations, on the metabolism of L. sativa. The variation of the composition of the photosynthetic pigments, sugars, lipids, phenols, fatty acids and flavonoids in lettuce seedlings exposed to the pollutants in respect to the blank was evaluated. The results of the phytotoxicity assays showed the possibility of a notable impact on the different vegetal communities and evidenced different sensitivity among cultivated and wild species, probably due to the different plant physiology.

Ecotoxicological impact of two soil remediation treatments in Lactuca sativa seeds

“…A soil contaminated with 3 ng g À1 of ibuprofen was used for remediation, taking into account the levels found in soil (Gibson et al, 2010;Aznar et al, 2014;Li, 2014). L. sativa (lettuce) was chosen to evaluate the phytotoxic effects of an ibuprofen contaminated soil before and after the application of the two above-mentioned soil remediation treatments, since this is a standard species recommended for phytotoxic studies (OECD, 2006;D'Abrosca et al, 2008).…”

Uptake and effects of a mixture of widely used therapeutic drugs in Eruca sativa L. and Zea mays L. plants

“…For example, CBZ and ibuprofen do not have toxic effects on ryegrass (Winker et al, 2010), and CBZ, diphenhydramine, and triclocarban do not have toxic effects on various crops (Wu et al, 2012). However, other studies have indicated that the uptake of drugs can inhibit plant growth and induce damage to plants (Boxall et al, 2006;Michelini et al, 2012;Dolliver et al, 2007;Shenker et al, 2011;D'Abrosca et al, 2008, Aristilde et al, 2010Eggen et al, 2011).…”

Evaluation of the toxic effects of four anti-cancer drugs in plant bioassays and its potency for screening in the context of waste water reuse for irrigation

“…Although L. sativa cannot be considered a representative species of the aquatic environment, the results generated in this assay can be used to evaluate the possible toxic effects of contaminants on plants that live near polluted water bodies (Sobrero and Ronco, 2004) or as a result of irrigation with reused water if contaminants are not fully removed in predicting treatment. Furthermore, it is a representative of main dicotyledon commercial crops and considered a standard species due to moderate sensitivity and high frequency of use in phytotoxicological tests (D'Abrosca et al, 2008;Hillis et al, 2011).…”