Ecotoxicological effects of human and veterinary antibiotics on water flea (Daphnia magna)

Abstract

In the present study, we assessed the ecotoxicological effects of selected human and veterinary antibiotics to D. magna. Ecological risk assessment was done by calculating the risk quotients (RQs) of the antibiotics to the species. Results showed that enrofloxacin, a veterinary fluoroquinolone antibiotic, was the most toxic against D. magna with a 48 h EC50 value of 28.59 mg/l. The binary mixture of fluoroquinolones was also more toxic to the species than binary mixtures of macrolides. Fecundity in organisms in negative control was higher than fecundity in organisms exposed to environmentally relevant concentrations of the four antibiotics. Enrofloxacin also has a moderate risk to the species with RQ values of 0.199 and 0.416 in surface waters and wastewaters, respectively. Antibiotics pose a greater ecological risk when present in mixtures in the aquatic environment. Environmental standards for pharmaceuticals should incorporate mixture toxicity data to ensure accurate protection of non-target organisms in polluted environments.