Ecotoxicology of Antimicrobial Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products in Illinois Rivers and Streams

Kelly, John; Rosi-Marshall, Emma; Scott, John

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/78015 Copy

Description

Title

Ecotoxicology of Antimicrobial Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products in Illinois Rivers and Streams

Author(s)

• Kelly, John
• Rosi-Marshall, Emma
• Scott, John

Issue Date

2015-02

Keyword(s)

• Triclosan -- Illinois -- Environmental aspects
• Personal care products -- Environmental aspects -- Illinois
• Antimicrobials -- Environmental aspects -- Illinois
• Sewage -- Environmental aspects -- Illinois
• Wastewater treatment plants -- Environmental aspects -- Illinois

Abstract

In urban areas wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent can represent a significant component of freshwater ecosystems, and WWTP effluent can be a point source for a variety of pollutants, including pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). We analyzed two field sites in the Chicago region: (1) an urban river receiving effluent from a large WWTP; and (2) a suburban river receiving effluent from a smaller WWTP. At both sites WWTP effluent had negative effects on the abundance and diversity of benthic bacterial communities. We then investigated the potential effects of one specific PPCP, triclosan, a broad-spectrum antimicrobial compound that is incorporated into numerous consumer products. We developed a method for the quantification of triclosan in sediment based on pressurized fluid extraction (PFE) by accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) and used this method to demonstrate that triclosan is present in streams in the Chicago region and that triclosan concentrations in stream sediments increased with degree of urbanization. Finally, we conducted a field survey and a lab-scale model stream experiment and demonstrated that triclosan exposure is linked to increases in triclosan resistance and decreases in biodiversity within benthic bacterial communities. These results indicate that widespread use of triclosan could have negative ecological consequences. Results also published in Bradley Drury, John Scott, Emma J. Rosi-Marshall, and John J. Kelly (2013). Environmental Science & Technology 47(15), 8923-8930. DOI: 10.1021/es401919k

Publisher

Champaign, IL : Illinois Sustainable Technology Center

Series/Report Name or Number

• RR Series (Illinois Sustainable Technology Center) ; 125
• Pollutants -- PPCPs in the Environment
• 2010 Sponsored Research Symposium

Type of Resource

text

Language

en

Permalink

• http://hdl.handle.net/2142/78015
• https://doi.org/10.1021/es401919k
• https://youtu.be/nIsLjQQIYs8

Sponsor(s)/Grant Number(s)

This research was funded by the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center, a division of the Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (Grant No. HWR09216).

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