Sequential window acquisition of all theoretical fragments versus information dependent acquisition for suspected-screening of pharmaceuticals in sediments and mussels by ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight-mass spectrometry

Development and comparison of parallel reaction monitoring and data-independent acquisition methods for quantitative analysis of hydrophilic compounds in white tea

In the present work, parallel reaction monitoring (PRM) and data-independent acquisition (DIA) methods were developed for the accurate quantitation of amino acids, alkaloids nucleosides and nucleotides in tea. The quality peaks were significantly enhanced by optimizing the LC elution procedure, HCD voltage, MS resolution, and scanning event. Both methods were validated with good liner linearity (0.004-200 μg/mL), LODs (0.001-0.309 μg/mL for PRM and 0.001-0.564 μg/mL for DIA). Applied to white tea sample, the contents of these hydrophilic compounds were range from 34,655.39 to 70,586.14 mg/kg, and caffeine (32,529.02 mg/kg) and theanine (5483.46 mg/kg) were determined as the most abundant ones. Based on the quantitation data set, the white tea samples from Puer, Lincang and Xishuangbanna were clearly discriminated using multivariate data analysis. The results of the present works show that PRM and DIA have great potential in quantitative analysis of multiple hydrophilic compounds in food samples.

Multi-class analysis of 100 drug residues in cosmetics using high-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight high-resolution mass spectrometry

Cosmetics are an important aspect of the lives of many people. With an increasing demand for cosmetics, consumers pay more attention to their efficacy and composition. To improve their efficacy, prohibited substances, such as hormones, glucocorticoids, antibiotics, antifungals and antihistamines, may be added to cosmetics. We developed a rapid method for the multi-class analysis of drug residues in toner and lotion cosmetic samples using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight high-resolution mass spectrometry (HPLC-Q-TOF-HRMS). The primary variables in the extraction and purification steps were studied to minimize the interference of the sample matrix. The non-information-dependent sequential window acquisition of all theoretical fragment ion spectra (SWATH®) mode was used to improve the data acquisition efficiency. The secondary product ion peak areas were used for quantification to obtain a satisfactory matrix effects. The validation experiments confirmed that the developed method exhibited good linearity (5-200 ng/L) with correlation coefficients (R) ≥ 0.9902. Our developed method was then successfully applied to 92 real cosmetic samples. The calibration curve established by this method can be used for retrospective quantitative analysis over long durations without re-calibration. This method is efficient and suitable for screening and controlling multi-class prohibited substances in the cosmetics industry to reduce potential risks.

Approaches to determine pesticides in marine bivalves

Due to agricultural runoff, pesticides end up in aquatic ecosystems and some accumulate in marine bivalves. As filter feeders, bivalves can accumulate high concentrations of chemicals in their tissue representing a potential risk to the health of human and aquatic ecosystems. So far, most of the studies dealing with pesticide contamination in marine bivalves, for example, in the French Atlantic and English Channel coasts, have focused on the old generation of pesticides. Only a few investigated the newly emerging pesticides partly due to methodological challenges. A better understanding of the most sensitive and reliable methods is thus essential for accurately determining a wide variety of environmentally relevant pesticides in marine bivalves. The review highlighted the use of more environmentally friendly and efficient materials such as sorbents and the "quick easy cheap effective rugged safe" extraction procedure to extract pesticides from bivalve matrices, as they appeared to be the most efficient while being the safest. Moreover, this method combined with the high-resolution mass spectrometry (MS) technique offers promising perspectives by highlighting a wide range of pesticides including those that are not usually sought. Finally, recent developments in the field of ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to MS, such as two-dimensional chromatography and ion mobility spectrometry, will improve the analysis of pesticides in complex matrices.

The burden of emerging contaminants upon an Atlantic Ocean marine protected reserve adjacent to Camps Bay, Cape Town, South Africa

The presence and levels of fifteen chemicals of emerging concerns, including five perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), two industrial chemicals, seven pharmaceuticals and one personal care product, were evaluated in biota, seawater and sediments obtained from near-shore coastal zone in Camps Bay, Cape Town, South Africa. Eight compounds were found in seawater, and between nine to twelve compounds were quantified in marine invertebrates, sediment and seaweed. Diclofenac was the prevalent pharmaceutical with a maximum concentration of 2.86 ng/L in seawater, ≥110.9 ng/g dry weight (dw) in sediments and ≥67.47 ng/g dw in marine biotas. Among PFCs, perfluoroheptanoic acid was predominant in seawater (0.21-0.46 ng/L). Accumulation of perfluorodecanoic acid (764 ng/g dw) as well as perfluorononanoic acid and perfluorooctanoic acid (504.52 and 597.04 ng/g dw, respectively) was highest in samples of seaweed. The environmental risk assessment carried out in this study showed that although individual pollutants pose a low acute and chronic risk, yet individual compounds each had a high bioaccumulation factor in diverse marine species, and their combination as a complex mixture in marine organisms might have adverse effects upon aquatic organisms. Data revealed that this Atlantic Ocean marine protected environment is affected by the presence of numerous and diverse emerging contaminants that could only have originated from sewage discharges. The complex mixture of persistent chemicals found bioaccumulating in marine organisms could bode ill for the propagation and survival of marine protected species, since many of these compounds are known toxicants.

A holistic comparison of flavor signature and chemical profile in different harvesting periods of Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat. based on metabolomics combined with bioinformatics and molecular docking strategy

Taiju and Duoju are products of Hangbaiju (HJ) obtained during different collection periods, and they have been commonly used as ingredients in tea beverages and dietary traditional Chinese medicine. This study reports an integrated strategy based on metabolomics, bioinformatics and molecular docking to further explore the effect of the harvesting period on the metabolic profile and clinical efficacy of HJ. Firstly, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS) were employed for non-targeted metabolomics profiling of essential oils and flavonoids. A sequential window acquisition of all theoretical fragment-ion spectra information-dependent acquisition (SWATH-IDA) bi-directionally verified (SIBDV) method was developed that integrates the advantages of both SWATH and IDA in characterizing flavonoids. Chemometric methods were then used to screen potential chemical markers. Furthermore, HJ is effective in hepatoprotective functions. Therefore, hepatocellular-carcinoma-related differentially expressed genes were obtained using bioinformatics, and the corresponding proteins were molecularly docked with diagnostic chemical markers. In total, 78 volatile oils and 63 flavonoids were tentatively identified. The results allowed the selection of 11 metabolites (5 volatile oils and 6 flavonoids), which are nominated as novel markers for material authentication of Taiju and Duoju. Additionally, two proteins associated with hepatoma were screened using bioinformatics. All six flavonoid markers with binding energies of <-5 kcal mol-1 were considered to be anti-hepatoma biomarkers. Noticeably, in Taiju, the content of hydroxygenkwanin showed a downward trend, but the content of the other five flavonoids and the five flavored volatile difference compounds had an upward trend. This bestows a unique flavor profile on Taiju, leading to differences in sensory aroma and clinical efficacy in Taiju and Duoju. In conclusion, the transformation of secondary metabolites was the dominant trend during HJ growth. These findings lay the foundation for food development and distinguishing clinical applications.

Development and validation according to the SANTE guidelines of a QuEChERS-UHPLC-QTOF-MS method for the screening of 204 pesticides in bivalves

A qualitative screening high resolution mass spectrometry method was developed and validated according to the EU SANTE/12682/2019 guidelines for the analysis of 204 pesticides in seven commercial bivalve species spiked at three concentrations (0.01, 0.05 and, 0.1 mg.kg^-1). Samples were extracted using QuEChERS and analysed using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The QuEChERS method was optimised by the Taguchi Orthogonal Array approach. The best conditions were obtained with pure ACN, MgSO₄/NaCl as extraction salts, MgSO₄/PSA/C18 as clean-up, and the non-dilution of extracts. The impact of different HRMS acquisition modes on detection and identification rates were also evaluated. The screening detection limits were determined to be 0.01 mg.kg^-1 and 0.1 for 66% and 87% of pesticides, respectively. These screening procedure was finally applied to different bivalve samples using target and suspect analysis. This allowed the identification of diuron and its metabolite 1-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-3-methylurea in the investigated samples.

Quality control of Zingiberis Rhizoma and its processed products by UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS-based non-targeted metabonomics combining with SIBDV method

Zingiberis Rhizoma (ZR) is a homologous plant with pungent tastes and aromas, which has unique nutritional value and tremendous application potentiality. Zingiberis Rhizoma Praeparatum (ZRP) and Carbonised Ginger (CG) are processed products of ZR through different processing methods, and they are commonly used ingredients in food supplements. This study used ZR, ZRP and CG from different batches to further understand composition differences after processing. Additionally, we performed non-targeted metabolomics-based profiling of gingerols by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with hybrid triple quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS) in combination with multivariate analysis and compounds identification. In which, we developed a comprehensive SWATH-IDA bi-directionally verified (SIBDV) method integrating the advantages of Sequential Windowed Acquisition of all Theoretical fragment ions (SWATHTM) and traditional information-dependent acquisition (IDA) mode for characterization of gingerols. Potential chemical markers were selected by principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) of chemometrics methods. After that, the threshold variable importance in projection (VIP) value and P value were employed to screen the valuable MS features for discriminating ZR, ZRP and CG. In total, 59 gingerols in the different samples were structurally identified. Results allowed the selection of 33 gingerols, which are nominated as novel markers for materials authentication in ZR, ZRP and CG. The analysis of the study showed that the content of gingerols showed a downward trend after processing, but shogaols and gingerone compounds had an upward trend, resulting in differences in application and pharmacodynamic efficacy. These findings provide promising perspectives in the quality control of ZR, ZRP and CG, as well as for laying the foundation in food design and development.

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in the Marine Environment Around False Bay, Cape Town, South Africa: Occurrence and Risk-Assessment Study

Pollution of the marine environment has been increasing as a result of anthropogenic activities. The preservation of marine ecosystems as well as the safety of harvested seafood are nowadays a global concern. In the present study, levels of pharmaceuticals and personal care products were assessed in different environmental compartments in the near-shore marine environment of False Bay, Cape Town, South Africa. The study revealed the presence of these persistent chemical compounds in different environmental samples from this location. Diclofenac was the most dominant compound detected, with higher concentration than the other pharmaceutical compounds, as well as being present in almost all the samples from the different sites (seawater, 3.70-4.18 ng/L; sediment, 92.08-171.89 ng/g dry wt; marine invertebrates, 67.67-780.26 ng/g dry wt; seaweed, 101.50-309.11 ng/g dry wt). The accumulation of pharmaceuticals and personal care products in the different species of organisms reflects the increasing anthropogenic pressure taking place at the sampling sites along the bay, as a result of population growth, resident lifestyle as well as poorly treated sewage effluent discharge from several associated wastewater-treatment plants. The concentration of these contaminants is in the order marine biota > sediments > seawater. The contaminants pose a low acute and chronic risk to the selected trophic levels. A public awareness campaign is needed to reduce the pollution at the source, as well as wastewater discharge limits need to be more stringent. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:614-634. © 2021 SETAC.

Screening of imidazoles in atmospheric aerosol particles using a hybrid targeted and untargeted method based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry

The method for identification and quantification of imidazoles in atmospheric aerosol particles with an aerodynamic diameter up to 2.5 μm (PM_2.5) is scarce, and the existing method focus on only a few imidazoles. With the goal of measuring more imidazoles, especially some previously unidentified ones, we developed a screening workflow based on data-dependent acquisition (DDA) auto MS/MS with a preferred targeted list containing 421 imidazoles using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS). To enable our method to effectively and accurately detect as many imidazoles as possible, we optimized and validated the method based on specificity, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), linearity, accuracy, precision and matrix effects using 20 imidazole standards with different functional groups. The method exhibited excellent performance with LOD and LOQ of 0.5-2 ng/mL and 1.5-6 ng/mL, respectively, and spiked recoveries ranging from 64.7 to 98.7% with standard deviations less than 16.0%, and with relatively shorter analytical time. The established method was then used to screen imidazoles in 37 ambient PM_2.5 samples. Ten targeted imidazoles were identified and quantified using imidazole standards, while five suspected imidazoles were identified without standards, and three imidazoles have not been reported before. Concentrations of the 10 targeted imidazoles ranged from 0.13 to 0.42 ng/m³. The established method enabled us to identify a wide range of imidazoles in ambient aerosol particles with and without using standards.

Configuration of the ion exchange chromatography, hydrophilic interaction chromatography, and reversed-phase chromatography as off-line three-dimensional chromatography coupled with high-resolution quadrupole-Orbitrap mass spectrometry for the multicomponent characterization of Uncaria sessilifructus

Herbs represent complex chemical systems involving various primary and secondary metabolites that are featured by large spans of acid-base property, polarity, molecular mass, and content, etc., which thus poses great challenges to characterize the metabolites contained. Here, the combination of multiple-mechanism chromatography coupled with improved data-dependent-MS² acquisition (DDA-MS²) is presented as a strategy to support the deep metabolites characterization. Targeting Uncaria sessilifructus, a reputable medicinal herb containing alkaloids and triterpenic acids (TAs) as the main pharmacologically bioactive ingredients, a three-dimensional liquid chromatography (3D-LC) system was established by integrating ion exchange chromatography, hydrophilic interaction chromatography, and reversed-phase chromatography (IEC-HILIC-RPC). The first-dimensional chromatography, configuring a PhenoSphere SCX column eluted by methanol/20 mM ammonium acetate-0.05% formic acid in water, could well fractionate the total extract into two fractions (unretained ingredients and alkaloids). The subsequent HILIC using an XAmide column and RPC by a CSH Phenyl-Hexyl column achieved the sufficient resolution of the total TAs and total alkaloids, respectively. A polarity-switching precursor ions list-including DDA approach by Q-Orbitrap-MS enabled the high-efficiency, coverage-enhanced identification of alkaloids and TAs. This 3D-LC/Q-Orbitrap-MS system was validated as precise (RSD < 5% for intra-day/inter-day precision), Up to 308 components were separated from U. sessilifructus, and 128 thereof (including 85 alkaloids, 29 TAs, and 14 others) were identified or tentatively characterized, exhibiting superiority over the conventional one-dimensional LC/MS. Conclusively, 3D-LC/MS in an off-line mode can facilitate the flexible configuration of multiple chromatography to accomplish the fit-for-purpose characterization of the metabolites from an herbal extract or a biosample.

A review on analytical methods with special reference to electroanalytical methods for the determination of some anticancer drugs in pharmaceutical and biological samples

It is widely accepted that cancer, the second leading cause of death, is a morbidity with big impacts on the global health. In the last few years, chemo-therapeutic treatment continually induces alone most lengthy consequents, which is extremely harmful for the physiological and psychological health of the patients. In the present research, we discuss the recent techniques for employed for extraction, and quantitative determination of such compounds in pharmaceutical, and biological specimens. In the frame of this information, this review aims to provide basic principles of chromatography, spectroscopy, and electroanalytical methods for the analysis of anticancer drugs published in the last three years. The review also describes the recent developments regarding enhancing the limit of detection (LOD), the linear dynamic range, and so forth. The results show that the LOD for the chromatographic techniques with the UV detector was obtained equaled over the range 2.0 ng mL^-1-0.2 μg mL^-1, whereas the LOD values for analysis by chromatographic technique with the mass spectrometry (MS) detector was found between 10.0 pg mL^-1-0.002 μg mL^-1. The biological fluids could be directly injected to capillary electrophoresis (CE) in cases where the medicine concentration is at the contents greater than mg L^-1 or g L^-1. Additionally, electrochemical detection of the anticancer drugs has been mainly conducted by the voltammetry techniques with diverse modified electrodes, and lower LODs were estimated between 3.0 ng mL^-1-0.3 μg mL^-1. It is safe to say that the analyses of anticancer drugs can be achieved by employing a plethora of techniques such as electroanalytical, spectroscopy, and chromatography techniques.

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in a Mediterranean coastal wetland: Impact of anthropogenic and spatial factors and environmental risk assessment

The present study focused on the occurrence, distribution and risk assessment of 32 pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in water and sediment, as well as the surrounding soil of the irrigation channels and lake of a Mediterranean coastal wetland, the Albufera Natural Park (Valencia, Spain). Moreover, the influent and effluent of ten wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) that treat wastewater from Valencia and the surrounding areas were also studied. BPA, caffeine, diclofenac, ethyl paraben, methyl paraben, metformin, tramadol and salicylic acid were the predominant PPCPs detected in the channels and the lake, and are in good agreement with those detected in the effluent. Furthermore, 22 PPCPs were detected in >47% of the sediment samples. Of them, BPA, ethyl paraben, furosemide, ibuprofen and salicylic acid were at higher concentrations. In contrast, only seven PPCPs were detected in >44% of the soil samples. Spatial variation showed that the concentration of many PPCPs was higher in the northern area of the park, whereas the ibuprofen concentrations were higher in the south. Differences were also observed according to the type of water used for irrigation and the land uses of the area. A risk assessment based on the hazardous quotient (HQ) indicated that caffeine is a compound of concern, and tramadol at the highest concentration showed a moderate risk for the organisms assessed. Considering the mixture of the PPCPs found at each sampling point, the green algae are at risk, particularly in those points located near the city of Valencia (the most important nearby human settlement). These results indicate the need for further studies.

Quantitative and Confirmatory Analysis of Pesticide Residues in Cereal Grains and Legumes by Liquid Chromatography-Quadrupole-Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry

For controlling pesticide residues in food and ensuring food safety, multiresidue methods that can monitor a wide range of pesticides in various types of foods are required for regulatory monitoring. In this study, to demonstrate the applicability of liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-QTOF-MS) for quantitative and confirmatory analysis of pesticide residues in cereal grains and legumes, the LC-QTOF-MS method using full-scan acquisition was validated for 151 pesticides in brown rice, soybeans, and peanuts at a spiked level of 0.01 mg/kg. With the exception of 5 out of 151 target pesticides, sufficiently high signal intensities were obtained at 0.005 μg/mL (corresponding to 0.01 mg/kg). Trueness was in the range 70-95%, with intra- and inter-day precisions below 16% and 24%, respectively, with the exception of 7 pesticides in brown rice, 10 pesticides in soybeans, and 9 pesticides in peanuts. No interfering peaks were observed near the retention times of the target pesticides. Furthermore, information on accurate fragment-ion masses obtained by a data-independent acquisition enabled unambiguous confirmation. The results suggest that the LC-QTOF-MS method is suitable for pesticide residues' analysis of cereal grains and legumes, and can be utilized for regulatory routine analysis.

Comparison of high resolution mrm and sequential window acquisition of all theoretical fragment-ion acquisition modes for the quantitation of 48 wastewater-borne pollutants in lettuce

Screening of a large number of chemicals of emerging concern is highly desirable for the control of crops irrigated with reclaimed water since it is considered an alternative water source of great value. This study describes a high resolution mass spectrometry approach for developing methods for quantification in lettuce leaves of 48 different wastewater-borne pollutants (including analgesics and anti-inflammatories, anti-hypertensives, antifungal agents, lipid regulators, psychiatric drugs and stimulants, β-blockers, antibiotics, antimycotics, and sweeteners) frequently found in water resources. In this respect, a simple and fast QuEChERS-based method for the determination of contaminants in lettuce has been developed. During extraction, the use of formic acid was adopted to further improve the results of some problematic compounds (e.g., fenofibrate, furosemide, metronidazole, oxcarbazepine, sulfanilamide). High resolution multiple reaction monitoring (MRMHR) and SWATH acquisition were compared in term of accuracy, repeatability, sensitivity, linearity and matrix effect. Both methods provided similar recoveries between 80 and 120% in lettuce leaves, although sulfanilamide, ciprofloxacin, and sulfamethazine presenting values of 26.8, 27.8, and 28.4% in MRMHR and 25, 33.9, and 35% in SWATH, respectively. The effectiveness of a two-step cleanup on analyte recovery was also assessed and matrix effects were also taken into consideration during the method validation. The developed method allows the simultaneous quantitative analysis of 48 compounds (drug residues and metabolites) in lettuce leaves irrigated with treated wastewater for human consumption. Application of the present method to lettuce crops growth in controlled conditions showed the presence of 14 out 48 studied compounds with similar concentrations in both acquisition modes ranging from 3.3 and 1.3 ng g - 1 for climbazole (for MRMHR and SWATH, respectively) to 33.2 and 17.7 ng g - 1 for sulfamethazine. Drug residues such as carbamazepine (6.0 and 8.5 ng g - 1), and its metabolite carbamazepine epoxide (18.1 and 16.5 ng g - 1), frequently found in wastewater effluents, were also detected.

Discrimination of Milk from Different Animal Species by a Foodomics Approach Based on High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry

An untargeted foodomics strategy based on ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole orbitrap and chemometrics was used to observe subtle differences in the molecule profiles of raw milk from different animal species (cow milk, goat milk, and water buffalo milk), which could prevent the fraud activities in the dairy industry. In data-dependent acquisition (DIA), spectra for all precursor ions facilitated the comprehensive identification of unknown compounds in untargeted foodomics. Chemometrics techniques were used to analyze large amounts of complex data to observe the separation of different sample groups and find the potential markers of sample groups. Finally, five markers were putatively identified by the potential marker identification workflow. The quantification results showed that β-carotene was found only in cow milk; ergocalciferol was found only in water buffalo milk; and the contents of nonanoic acid, decanoic acid, and octanoic acid were higher in goat milk than those in cow milk and water buffalo milk. The quantification of β-carotene enabled the detection of cow milk with a sensitivity threshold of 5% (w/w). This work provided an efficient approach for the discrimination of cow milk, goat milk, and water buffalo milk. Compared with proteomics and genomics, the simpler analytical procedures, lower costs, and higher speed of this work make it of great benefit for routine operations.

Suspected-target and non-targeted screenings of phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors in herbal remedies using liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight-mass spectrometry

The lucrative market of herbal remedies spurs rampant adulteration, particularly with pharmaceutical drugs and their unapproved analogues. A comprehensive screening strategy is, therefore, warranted to detect these adulterants and, accordingly, to safeguard public health. This study uses the data-dependent acquisition of liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (LC-QTOF-MS) to screen phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5) inhibitors in herbal remedies using suspected-target and non-targeted strategies. For the suspected-target screening, we used a library comprising 95 PDE5 inhibitors. For the non-targeted screening, we adopted top-down and bottom-up approaches to flag novel PDE5 inhibitor analogues based on common fragmentation patterns. LC-QTOF-MS was optimised and validated for capsule and tablet dosage forms using 23 target analytes, selected to represent different groups of PDE5 inhibitors. The method exhibited excellent specificity and linearity with limit of detection and limit of quantification of <40 and 80 ng/mL, respectively. The accuracy ranged from 79.0% to 124.7% with a precision of <14.9% relative standard deviation. The modified, quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe extraction provided insignificant matrix effect within -9.1%-8.0% and satisfactory extraction recovery of 71.5%-105.8%. These strategies were used to screen 52 herbal remedy samples that claimed to enhance male sexual performance. The suspected-target screening resulted in 33 positive samples, revealing 10 target analytes and 2 suspected analytes. Systematic MS and tandem MS interrogations using the non-targeted screening returned insignificant signals, indicating the absence of potentially novel analogues. The target analytes were quantified from 0.03 to 121.31 mg per dose of each sample. The proposed strategies ensure that all PDE5 inhibitors are comprehensively screened, providing a useful tool to curb the widespread adulteration of herbal remedies.

Occurrences, levels and risk assessment studies of emerging pollutants (pharmaceuticals, perfluoroalkyl and endocrine disrupting compounds) in fish samples from Kalk Bay harbour, South Africa

A comprehensive analysis of 15 target chemical compounds (pharmaceuticals and personal care product, perfluoroalkyl compounds and industrial chemicals) were carried out to determine their concentrations in selected commercially exploited, wild caught small and medium sized pelagic fish species and their organs (Thyrsites atun (snoek), Sarda orientalis (bonito), Pachymetopon blochii (panga) and Pterogymnus laniarius (hottentot)) obtained from Kalk Bay harbour, Cape Town. Solid phase extraction (SPE) method based on Oasis HLB cartridges were used to concentrate and clean-up the samples. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of these chemical compounds revealed the simultaneous presence of at least 12 compounds in different parts of the selected fish species in nanogram-per-gram dry weight (ng/g dw) concentrations. The results revealed that perfluorodecanoic acid, perfluorononanoic acid and perfluoroheptanoic acid were the most predominant among the perfluorinated compounds and ranged between: (20.13-179.2 ng/g), (21.22-114.0 ng/g) and (40.06-138.3 ng/g). Also, diclofenac had the highest concentration in these edible fish species out of all the pharmaceuticals detected (range: 551.8-1812 ng/g). The risk assessment values were above 0.5 and 1.0 for acute and chronic risk respectively which shows that these chemicals have a high health risk to the pelagic fish, aquatic organisms and to humans who consume them. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a precautionary approach and the adequate regulation of the use and disposal of synthetic chemicals that persist in aquatic/marine environment in this province and other parts of South Africa, to prevent impacts on the sustainability of our marine environment, livelihood and lives.