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Bioassays Currently Available for Evaluating the Biological Potency of Pharmaceuticals in Treated Wastewater

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Wastewater Reuse and Current Challenges

Part of the book series: The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry ((HEC,volume 44))

Abstract

Water deprivation with regard to quantity and quality is one of the most important environmental problems of the century. The increasing demand of water resources puts pressure on the utilization of alternative sources such as treated wastewater. In the context of “reduce, reuse, and recycle,” the inclusion of treated wastewater in the water cycle seems a promising practice for water management. The lack of general acceptance of stakeholders and public, however, still hinders the widespread application of wastewater reuse. A reason for this is, among others, the presence of contaminants of emerging concern in treated wastewater. This has led to an increased concern about direct and indirect effects to the environment and possible implications to human health. The development and application of bioassays able to identify and quantify the biological potency of treated wastewater is an ongoing research effort, especially when taking into consideration that a plethora of contaminants exist and interact in this complex matrix. This chapter summarizes available literature regarding the sensitivity of currently applied bioassays for assessing biological effects of treated wastewater and their correlation with chemical analysis. The focus is on pharmaceuticals since they represent one of the major groups of contaminants of emerging concern with many unanswered questions currently in place.

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Abbreviations

CEC:

Contaminants of emerging concern

COD:

Chemical Oxygen Demand

COX:

Cyclooxygenase

DTA:

Direct toxicity assessment

EC:

Effect Concentration

EROD:

Ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase

ISO:

International Organization for Standardization

LC:

Lethal Concentration

LOEC:

Lowest Observed Effect Concentration

MIC:

Minimum Inhibitory Concentration

NADPH:

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate

NOEC:

No Observed Effect Concentration

OECD:

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

PGE2 :

Prostaglandin E2

PSII:

Photosystem II

TU:

Toxic unit

USEPA:

US Environmental Protection Agency

WET:

Whole effluent toxicity

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Acknowledgments

This work was prepared in the framework of the PENEK/0609/24 research project “Development of novel methods for the toxicity assessment of the multi-component chemical mixtures to humans and the ecosystem” (TOMIXX), implemented within the framework of the program for research, technological development, and innovation “DESMH 2009–2010” and stimulated by NIREAS activities, the International Water Research Center of the University of Cyprus (ΝΕΑ ΥΠΟΔΟΜΗ/ΣΤΡΑΤΗ/0308/09). These projects are funded by the Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation, which is co-financed by the Republic of Cyprus and the European Regional Development Fund. The authors would also like to acknowledge the financial support provided by COST - European Cooperation in Science and Technology, to the COST Action ES1403: New and emerging challenges and opportunities in wastewater reuse (NEREUS).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Science and Technology, Cyprus University of Technology, 30 Archbishop Kyprianou street, 3036, Limassol, Cyprus

    Marlen I. Vasquez

  2. Nireas-International Water Research Center, 1 Panepistimiou Avenue, 2109, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Marlen I. Vasquez, Irene Michael & Despo Fatta-Kassinos

  3. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Cyprus, 75 Kallipoleos Street, 1678, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Irene Michael & Despo Fatta-Kassinos

  4. Institute of Sustainable and Environmental Chemistry, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Scharnhorststraße 1/C13, 21335, Lüneburg, Germany

    Klaus Kümmerer

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  1. Marlen I. Vasquez
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  2. Irene Michael
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  3. Klaus Kümmerer
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  4. Despo Fatta-Kassinos
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Correspondence to Marlen I. Vasquez .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Despo Fatta-Kassinos

  2. Department of Biomedical, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

    Dionysios D. Dionysiou

  3. Institute of Sustainable and Environmental Chemistry, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Niedersachsen, Germany

    Klaus Kümmerer

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Vasquez, M.I., Michael, I., Kümmerer, K., Fatta-Kassinos, D. (2015). Bioassays Currently Available for Evaluating the Biological Potency of Pharmaceuticals in Treated Wastewater. In: Fatta-Kassinos, D., Dionysiou, D., Kümmerer, K. (eds) Wastewater Reuse and Current Challenges . The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, vol 44. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/698_2015_417

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