Abstract
The photodegradation process of seven glucocorticoids (GCs), cortisone (CORT), hydrocortisone (HCORT), betamethasone (BETA), dexamethasone (DEXA), prednisone (PRED), prednisolone (PREDLO) and triamcinolone (TRIAM) was studied in tap and river water at a concentration close to the environmental ones. All drugs underwent sunlight degradation according to a pseudo-first-order decay. The kinetic constants ranged from 0.00082 min−1 for CORT to 0.024 min−1 for PRED and PREDLO. The photo-generated products were identified by high-pressure liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS/MS). The main steps of the degradation pathways were the oxidative cleavage of the chain 17 for CORT, HCORT and the rearrangement of the cyclohexadiene moiety for the other GCs. The acute and chronic toxicity of GCs and of their photoproducts was assessed by the V. fischeri and P. subcapitata inhibition assays. The bioassays revealed no significant differences in toxicity between the parent compounds and their photoproducts, but the two organisms showed different responses. All samples produced a moderate acute toxic effect on V. fisheri and no one in the chronic tests. On the contrary, evident hormesis or eutrophic effect was produced on the algae, especially for long-term contact.
Highlights
Glucocorticoids (GCs), the synthetic derivatives of the natural steroid hormone hydrocortisone (HCORT), are the most widely used anti-inflammatory drugs both in human and veterinary therapy [1].They help to regulate physiological functions such as energy metabolism, immune system response, skeletal growth, cardiovascular function, reproduction, cognition and stress adaption in the vertebrates [2].Recent literature reports that the total GCs prescriptions largely exceed those of estrogens and androgens due to their significant therapeutic advantages
GCs undergo a partial degradation by metabolic reactions and a significant part of them, excreted by kidneys [5], reaches unmodified urban wastewater sewage treatment plants (WWTPs), along
A series of irradiation experiments were performed on tap and not filtered river water samples spiked with 50 μg L−1 of each GC under simulated solar light to mimic the real environmental conditions and to follow the degradation process
Summary
Glucocorticoids (GCs), the synthetic derivatives of the natural steroid hormone hydrocortisone (HCORT), are the most widely used anti-inflammatory drugs both in human and veterinary therapy [1].They help to regulate physiological functions such as energy metabolism, immune system response, skeletal growth, cardiovascular function, reproduction, cognition and stress adaption in the vertebrates [2].Recent literature reports that the total GCs prescriptions largely exceed those of estrogens and androgens due to their significant therapeutic advantages. Glucocorticoids (GCs), the synthetic derivatives of the natural steroid hormone hydrocortisone (HCORT), are the most widely used anti-inflammatory drugs both in human and veterinary therapy [1]. They help to regulate physiological functions such as energy metabolism, immune system response, skeletal growth, cardiovascular function, reproduction, cognition and stress adaption in the vertebrates [2]. Recent literature reports that the total GCs prescriptions largely exceed those of estrogens and androgens due to their significant therapeutic advantages. GCs undergo a partial degradation by metabolic reactions and a significant part of them, excreted by kidneys [5], reaches unmodified urban wastewater sewage treatment plants (WWTPs), along. Public Health 2020, 17, 8717; doi:10.3390/ijerph17238717 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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