Removal of Organic UV Filters Using Enzymes in Spent Mushroom Composts from Fungicultures

Chu-Wen Yang,Bea-Ven Chang,Wen-Yi Tso,Ping-Hsun Tu

doi:10.3390/app11093932

Abstract

Organic UV filters in sunscreen products are released to aquatic ecosystems through human recreational activities and urban wastewater treatment plant effluents. The biodegradation of three organic UV filters, 2-ethylhexyl salicylate (EHS), homosalate (HMS) and ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate (EHMC), which cannot be effectively removed by conventional wastewater treatment plants, was investigated in this study. Spent mushroom compost (SMC), a waste product of the mushroom industry, which contains white-rot fungus extracellular enzymes, was tested for its ability to remove the three organic UV filters. The results of batch experiments revealed that the SMC enzyme extract of Pleurotus djamor exhibited the highest ability for EHS and HMS removal. The results of bioreactor experiments indicated that direct application of SMCs may be a feasible solution to remove EHS and HMS from urban wastewater. The application of SMCs for the removal of organic UV filters can be developed into a green and sustainable technology.

Highlights

Organic UV filters are major components of sunscreen products
ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate (EHMC) can be removed by all of the four Spent mushroom compost (SMC) enzyme extracts very fast. These results indicate that the enzyme associated with ethylhexyl salicylate (EHS) and HMS removal is absent or at a very low level in the SMC enzyme extracts of A. polytricha
Batch experiments suggested that laccases are associated with EHS and HMS degradation because EHS and HMS were not degraded by the SMC enzyme extracts of A. polytricha

Summary

Introduction

Organic UV filters are major components of sunscreen products. They can absorb solar UV radiation to protect humans from acute (sunburn, photoaging) and chronic (skin cancer) damage [1]. EHMC and HMS were identified in samples from estuaries in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria, Australia [7] and Chesapeake Bay, USA [8]. These results indicated that three organic UV filters (EHS, HMS and EHMC) widely occur in urban wastewater, freshwater rivers and lakes and cannot be effectively removed by conventional wastewater treatment plants

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