In vivo toxicities of the hospital effluent in Mahdia Tunisia.

Sabrine Afsa,Mohamed Fadhel Najjar,Nouha Ben Abdeljelil,Anouar Feriani,Hedi Ben Mansour,Ons Fekih Sallem

doi:10.2166/wh.2021.024

Abstract

Hospital effluent (HE) is one of the most important sources of pharmaceuticals released into the environment. This kind of pollution is a recognized problem for both human health and aquatic life. Consequently, in the present study, we assessed the effects of untreated hospital effluent on mice via biochemical and histopathological determinations. Female mice were given free access to water bottles containing untreated HE at different dilutions for 21 days. Then clinical biochemistry and histopathology evaluation were conducted. Serum biochemistry analysis showed the presence of significant increase in cholesterol, triglycerides, glycaemia and total bilirubin. However, phosphatase alkaline and urea activities have been significantly decreased compared to the control group. No significant variation was observed for the rest of the studied parameters (high-density lipoproteins; low-density lipoproteins and uric acid). Additionally, multiple alterations, including cellular necrosis, leucocyte infiltration and congestion, were observed in different tissues of mice exposed to the tested HE.

Highlights

Pharmaceuticals are a group of chemically active compounds used for diagnosis, treatment and prevention
Mice were sacrificed under light ether anaesthesia, and blood samples were drawn from the heart ventricle of anaesthetized animals immediately for biochemical assays
The total body weight has not significantly increased in the treated groups during the exposure period compared to the control group (Table 2)

Summary

Introduction

Pharmaceuticals are a group of chemically active compounds used for diagnosis, treatment and prevention They play an important role in the population’s well-being. Active compounds (PhACs) are continuously released into the aquatic environment (Seifrtová et al ) due to the increase of these drugs’ consumption in Many research studies have been focusing on the characterization of HEs (Verlicchi et al a; Santos et al ; Mendoza et al ; Oliveira et al ), which are of particular concern due to their specific chemical, physical and biological properties.

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Conclusion