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Validation and application of an LC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantification of 13 pharmaceuticals in seawater

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Abstract

Knowledge of the presence of micropollutants such as pharmaceuticals, in coastal areas, is very limited; therefore, the main objective of this study was to optimize and validate a new analytical method for the quantitative analysis of 13 multiclass pharmaceuticals in seawater. Target compounds included antibiotics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, β-blockers, lipid regulators and one psychiatric drug. A combination of solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography coupled with multiple mass spectrometry enabled their detection at the low nanogram per litre level. The limits of quantification varied between 1 and 50 ng L-1, for most components the linearities were more than 0.99 and the recoveries obtained in seawater (95–108%) were satisfactory. This method was applied to seawater and estuarine water samples collected in the Belgian coastal zone, to assess the prevalence of common pharmaceuticals in this marine environment. Seven pharmaceuticals, including compounds of which the presence in marine environments had not been reported earlier, were detected, with salicylic acid and carbamazepine being the most abundant, in concentrations up to 855 ng L-1.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Research group of Veterinary public Health and Zoonoses, Laboratory of Chemical Analysis, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, 9820, Merelbeke, Belgium

    Klaas Wille, Herlinde Noppe, Karolien Verheyden, Julie Vanden Bussche, Hubert F. De Brabander & Lynn Vanhaecke

  2. Laboratory for Analysis of Organic Micropollutants, Flemish Environment Agency (FEA), Krijgslaan 281-S2, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Eric De Wulf & Peter Van Caeter

  3. Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, J. Plateaustraat 22, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Colin R. Janssen

Authors
  1. Klaas Wille
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  2. Herlinde Noppe
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  3. Karolien Verheyden
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  4. Julie Vanden Bussche
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  5. Eric De Wulf
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  6. Peter Van Caeter
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  7. Colin R. Janssen
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  8. Hubert F. De Brabander
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  9. Lynn Vanhaecke
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Correspondence to Lynn Vanhaecke.

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Wille, K., Noppe, H., Verheyden, K. et al. Validation and application of an LC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantification of 13 pharmaceuticals in seawater. Anal Bioanal Chem 397, 1797–1808 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-010-3702-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-010-3702-z

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