Abstract
Currently, analgesics and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are classified as one of the most emerging group of xenobiotics and have been detected in various natural matrices. Among them, monocyclic paracetamol and ibuprofen, widely used to treat mild and moderate pain are the most popular. Since long-term adverse effects of these xenobiotics and their biological and pharmacokinetic activity especially at environmentally relevant concentrations are better understood, degradation of such contaminants has become a major concern. Moreover, to date, conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are not fully adapted to remove that kind of micropollutants. Bioremediation processes, which utilize bacterial strains with increased degradation abilities, seem to be a promising alternative to the chemical methods used so far. Nevertheless, despite the wide prevalence of paracetamol and ibuprofen in the environment, toxicity and mechanism of their microbial degradation as well as genetic background of these processes remain not fully characterized. In this review, we described the current state of knowledge about toxicity and biodegradation mechanisms of paracetamol and ibuprofen and provided bioinformatics analysis concerning the genetic bases of these xenobiotics decomposition.
Highlights
A wide range of unique emerging pollutants, including pharmaceuticals and their metabolites or residues, are continuously introduced into various environments mainly from hospital and municipal wastewater, consumer use, or disposal and discharges from pharmaceutical production (Hu et al 2013; Zhang et al 2013; Ebele et al 2017)
One of the most prevalent anthropogenic group of xenobiotics, which have been detected in soil, sediments, and surface, ground, or even drinking water are analgesics and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
From the environmental point of view, annual production of NSAIDs, which oscillates around several kilotons, their increasing consumption and prevalence in medicine must be reflected in natural matrices (Parolini et al 2011)
Summary
A wide range of unique emerging pollutants, including pharmaceuticals and their metabolites or residues, are continuously introduced into various environments mainly from hospital and municipal wastewater, consumer use, or disposal and discharges from pharmaceutical production (Hu et al 2013; Zhang et al 2013; Ebele et al 2017). ST1 strain isolated from contaminated sites in Bhai Pheru, Pakistan, being able to grow on paracetamol and its main degradation intermediate, 4-aminophenol, at concentration of 4 g/L as a sole carbon and energy source and 5 g/L in medium supplemented with glucose. Hu et al (2013) described strain HJ1012 classified as Pseudomonas aeruginosa which exhibit ability to degrade paracetamol at concentration up to 2.2 g/L and utilize it as the sole carbon and energy source. The similar catabolic degradation pathways were suggested by Zhang et al (2013), who described one strain from Stenotrophomonas genus (f1 strain) and two Pseudomonas strains (f2, fg-2) isolated from aerobic aggregate which use paracetamol as the sole carbon, nitrogen, and energy source. Recombinant hydroxyquinol 1,2dioxygenase derived from Arthrobacter chlorophenolicus A6 immobilized on single-walled carbon nanotubes using physical adsorption and covalent bounding by Suma et al (2016) was characterized by increased temperature range and resistance to harsh environmental factors, i.e., ionic strength
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