Evaluation of the degradation of acetaminophen by the filamentous fungus Scedosporium dehoogii using carbon-based modified electrodes

Advancing fungal biodegradation of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs - challenges and future perspectives

Environmental pollution poses serious threats to ecosystems, human health, and overall quality of life. Among the most concerning pollutants are emerging contaminants like nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), commonly used in human and veterinary medicine. These drugs and their metabolites are excreted into wastewater systems, where existing treatment methods often fail to eliminate them fully. Due to their persistence in aquatic environments, NSAIDs accumulate, necessitating innovative degradation strategies. Fungal biotransformation offers a promising solution, using the unique metabolic capabilities of unicellular yeasts and filamentous fungi. This review explores the potential of fungi to degrade NSAIDs through various enzymatic and nonenzymatic pathways. It also highlights key challenges and perspectives in the field, such as understanding NSAID-fungal cell wall interactions, the role of transcriptional factors, and the regulatory networks involved in pharmaceutical biodegradation. The goal is to advance fungal-based strategies for more effective NSAID removal from wastewater, contributing to broader environmental remediation efforts.

Dual Repurposing of End-of-Life BWRO Membranes: Ultrafiltration Membranes for Advanced Wastewater Treatment and Cation Exchange Membranes for Fungal Microbial Fuel Cells

The objective of this study is to evaluate the degradation of end-of-life BWRO membranes sourced from a factory in France by analyzing their water permeability, roughness, and chemical composition in order to diagnose the level of degradation incurred during their first life cycle in water softening. Following this, two new applications for the end-of-life BWRO membranes were investigated: (i) as ultrafiltration membranes (UF) for domestic effluent treatment and (ii) as cation exchange membranes (CEM) for use in fungal microbial fuel cells (FMFC). The UF membrane was renovated with an acetic acid treatment and, subsequently, used for domestic effluent filtration. The cation exchange membrane was developed in two steps: (i) chlorine treatment and (ii) the deposition of an Amer Sil layer, a functional coating formed by an interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) made of sulfonated polyether sulfone (S-PES) in a cross-linked matrix of acrylic acid and divinylbenzene.

Degradation of Emerging Pharmaceutical Pollutants from Wastewater Using Penicillium aurantiogriseum 2AJS

Approximately 3000 pharmaceutical compounds and personal care products (PPCPs) are utilized and discharged into the wastewater at low levels, and they are rarely removed or treated in wastewater treatment facilities. The present study focused on the potential ability of Penicillium aurantiogriseum 2AJS to degrade pharmaceutical and personal care products of different classes of drugs: antipyretic and analgesic drugs (paracetamol, diclofenac, and ibuprofen) and hormones (estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone). Various ligninolytic extracellular enzymatic studies were also studied. A phytotoxicity assay was performed using the Lemna minor species procured from the Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore. The results revealed degradation of pharmaceutical and personal care products to 95.27% (paracetamol), 94.37% (diclofenac), 89.29% (ibuprofen), 94.16% (progesterone), 91.10% (estrogen), and 82.12% (testosterone). GC-MS and NMR analyses aided in proposing the degradation pathway of all six pharmaceutical compounds. Degradation kinetics showed a first-order model for all the degradation studies with R2 values ranging between 0.89 and 0.95. A toxicological assay using Lemna minor showed very less toxicity of degraded compounds with a toxicity index ranging between 1.2 and 1.5 compared to the parent compounds. Hence, strain 2AJS can be used in in situ bioremediation of wastewater treatment processes.

Transcriptomic Analysis of Acetaminophen Biodegradation by Penicillium chrysogenum var. halophenolicum and Insights into Energy and Stress Response Pathways

(1) Background: Acetaminophen (APAP), an active component of many analgesic and antipyretic drugs, is one of the most concerning trace contaminants in the environment and is considered as an emergent pollutant of marine and aquatic ecosystems. Despite its biodegradability, APAP has become a recalcitrant compound due to the growth of the global population, the ease of availability, and the inefficient wastewater treatment applied. (2) Methods: In this study, we used a transcriptomic approach to obtain functional and metabolic insights about the metabolization of APAP by a phenol-degrading fungal strain, Penicillium chrysogenum var. halophenolicum. (3) Results: We determined that the transcriptomic profile exhibited by the fungal strain during APAP degradation was very dynamic, being characterized by an abundance of dysregulated transcripts which were proportional to the drug metabolization. Using a systems biology approach, we also inferred the protein functional interaction networks that could be related to APAP degradation. We proposed the involvement of intracellular and extracellular enzymes, such as amidases, cytochrome P450, laccases, and extradiol-dioxygenases, among others. (4) Conclusions: Our data suggested that the fungus could metabolize APAP via a complex metabolic pathway, generating nontoxic metabolites, which demonstrated its potential in the bioremediation of this drug.

Extracellularly Released Molecules by the Multidrug-Resistant Fungal Pathogens Belonging to the Scedosporium Genus: An Overview Focused on Their Ecological Significance and Pathogenic Relevance

The multidrug-resistant species belonging to the Scedosporium genus are well recognized as saprophytic filamentous fungi found mainly in human impacted areas and that emerged as human pathogens in both immunocompetent and immunocompromised individuals. It is well recognized that some fungi are ubiquitous organisms that produce an enormous amount of extracellular molecules, including enzymes and secondary metabolites, as part of their basic physiology in order to satisfy their several biological processes. In this context, the molecules secreted by Scedosporium species are key weapons for successful colonization, nutrition and maintenance in both host and environmental sites. These biologically active released molecules have central relevance on fungal survival when colonizing ecological places contaminated with hydrocarbons, as well as during human infection, particularly contributing to the invasion/evasion of host cells and tissues, besides escaping from the cellular and humoral host immune responses. Based on these relevant premises, the present review compiled the published data reporting the main secreted molecules by Scedosporium species, which operate important physiopathological events associated with pathogenesis, diagnosis, antimicrobial activity and bioremediation of polluted environments.

Oxytetracycline and paracetamol biodegradation performance in the same enriched feed medium with aerobic nitrification/anaerobic denitrification SBR

Pharmaceuticals such as oxytetracycline and paracetamol are extensive chemicals in the aquatic systems. In this study, the removal performance of oxytetracycline and paracetamol was investigated in the same enriched feed water medium by sequencing batch aerobic/anaerobic reactor system. In this context, oxytetracycline and paracetamol in the aerobic phase were removed by a maximum of 66 and 99.8% respectively. At the same time, nitrification and denitrification removals were obtained as 95% and 98%, respectively. On the other hand, oxytetracycline and equivalent O₂ flux of oxytetracycline maximum were calculated as 1.18 and 2.14 mg/L.d and the maximum removal volumetric flux of paracetamol and its O₂ equivalent flux were determined approximately as 136 and 303 mg/L.d, simultaneously. In addition, oxytetracycline and paracetamol were given to the system in an amount of maximum 1 and 500 mg/L, respectively. Paracetamol has not significantly affected nitrification and denitrification up to 120 mg/L, but 500 mg/L paracetamol has completely finished denitrification in this system. On the other hand, the water environment of sequencing batc reactor has turned into a pitch dark state at 500 mg/L paracetamol feeding. As a result, aerobic bacteria preferred paracetamol rather than oxytetracycline. In other words, aerobic bacteria preferred paracetamol/oxytetracycline as the second electron acceptor after O₂.

Phthalocyanine Modified Electrodes in Electrochemical Analysis

Phthalocyanines are aromatic or macrocyclic organic compounds and attract great attention due to their numerous properties. They have many high-tech applications in different areas of the industry such as dyestuffs, thermal printing screens, photovoltaic solar cells, membrane catalytic reactors, semiconductor materials and gas sensors. In the last decade, electrochemical sensor studies have accelerated with the catalytic lighting. It plays a dominant role in the development and implementation of new generation sensors. The aim of this study is to review the electrochemical methods based on electrode modification with phthalocyanines and to shed light on new application areas of phthalocyanines. The focal point was based on the sensor applications of phthalocyanines in the determination of drugs, pesticides, organic materials and metals etc. by electrochemical methods. Experimental conditions and some validation parameters of the sensor applications such as metal phthalocyanine types, indicator electrodes, selectivity, working ranges, detection limits, and analytical applications were discussed. Consequently, this is the first review dealing with the applications of phthalocyanines in electrochemical sensors for the sensitive determination of analytes in a variety of matrices.