Fabric Phase Sorptive Extraction of Selected Steroid Hormone Residues in Commercial Raw Milk Followed by Ultra-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Hormones in edible matrices, such as milk, are a subject of concern because of their adverse effects on the endocrine system and cell signaling and the consequent disruption of homeostasis in human consumers. Therefore, the assessment of the presence of hormones in milk as potential endocrine-disrupting compounds is warranted. However, the complexity of milk as a sample matrix and the ultra-low concentration of hormones pose significant analytical challenges. Fabric phase sorptive extraction (FPSE) has emerged as a powerful analytical technique for the extraction of emerging pollutants from complex aqueous matrices. FPSE allows for substantially simplified sample handling and short extraction and desorption times, as well as the decreased use of organic solvents. It is considered a green alternative to traditional extraction methodologies. In this work, the FPSE technique was evaluated to perform the simultaneous extraction of 15 steroid hormones from raw milk without employing any sample pretreatment steps. Clean and preconcentrated hormone solutions obtained from FPSE of raw milk were analyzed using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry to achieve low detection limits, which ranged from 0.047 to 1.242 ng·mL⁻¹. Because of the presence of many interferents in milk, such as proteins, lipids, and sugar, the effect of fat content on the extraction procedure was also thoroughly studied. Additionally, for the first time, the effect of lactose on the extraction of steroid hormones was evaluated, and the results showed that the extraction efficiencies were enhanced in lactose-free samples. Finally, the optimized methodology was applied to commercial samples of cow and goat milk, and no measurable concentrations of the studied hormones were detected in these samples.

Pharmaceutical and personal care product residues in a macrophyte pond-constructed wetland treating wastewater from a university campus: Presence, removal and ecological risk assessment

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) constitute a group of chemicals of concern because of their potential toxicity when reaching aquatic environments. Wastewaters are one of the main pathways of introduction into the environment of the chemical compounds used in PPCPs because, in most cases, wastewater treatment facilities are not 100% efficient in their removal. This problem is accentuated in rural zones and isolated communities where conventional treatment systems are too expensive to build and operate. Waste-stabilization ponds and constructed wetlands (CWs) are natural wastewater treatment systems which are used to improve the quality of sewage from small communities because of their low cost and easy maintenance. There is growing interest in combining the two technologies to make a more robust system, taking into account their respective strengths and weaknesses. In this work, a combined macrophyte pond-CW system was evaluated for the presence at three sampling points (influent, pond effluent and CW effluent) of fifteen steroid hormones and six benzotriazole ultraviolet stabilizers (BUVSs). None of the targeted BUVS compounds were detected in either the influent or effluent, probably because of the particular characteristics of the population served by the wastewater system. In contrast, eight different steroid hormone compounds were detected at concentrations ranging from 17.3 to 247.7 ng·L^-1 in influent samples and from 8.1 to 22.1 ng·L^-1 in final effluent samples. The pond-CW system showed high elimination rates of steroid hormone residues with average removal efficiencies of over 77%. This efficacy was confirmed in the ecological risk assessment evaluation that was performed. Final effluents showed a low ecological risk associated with steroid hormones in contrast to the medium-high ecological risks found in the influent samples.

Study on the removal of hormones from domestic wastewaters with lab-scale constructed wetlands with different substrates and flow directions

Eight wastewater samples from a university campus were analysed between May and July of 2014 to determine the concentration of 14 natural and synthetic steroid hormones. An on-line solid-phase extraction combined with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (on-line SPE-UHPLC-MS/MS) was used as extraction, pre-concentration and detection method. In the samples studied, three oestrogens (17β-estradiol, estrone and estriol), two androgens (boldenone and testosterone), three progestogens (norgestrel, progesterone and norethisterone) and one glucocorticoid (prednisone) were detected. The removal of hormones was studied in primary and secondary constructed wetland mesocosms. The porous media of the primary constructed wetlands were palm tree mulch. These reactors were used to study the effect of water flow, i.e. horizontal (HF1) vs vertical (VF1). The latter was more efficient in the removal of 17β-estradiol (HF1: 30%, VF1: 50%), estrone (HF1: 63%, VF1: 85%), estriol (100% both), testosterone (HF1: 45%, VF1: 73%), boldenone (HF1:-77%, VF1: 100%) and progesterone (HF1: 84%, VF1: 99%). The effluent of HF1 was used as influent of three secondary constructed wetland mesocosms: two double-stage vertical flow constructed wetlands, one with gravel (VF2gravel) and one with palm mulch (VF2mulch), and a mineral-based, horizontal flow constructed wetland (HFmineral). VF2mulch was the most efficient of the secondary reactors, since it achieved the complete removal of the hormones studied with the exception of 17ß-estradiol. The significantly better removal of BOD and ammonia attained by VF2mulch suggests that the better aeration of mulch favoured the more efficient removal of hormones.

Simultaneous determination of hormonal residues in treated waters using ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

In the last years, hormone consumption has increased exponentially. Because of that, hormone compounds are considered emerging pollutants since several studies have determinted their presence in water influents and effluents of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). In this study, a quantitative method for the simultaneous determination of oestrogens (estrone, 17 β -estradiol, estriol, 17 α -ethinylestradiol, and diethylstilbestrol), androgens (testosterone), and progestogens (norgestrel and megestrol acetate) has been developed to determine these compounds in wastewater samples. Due to the very low concentrations of target compounds in the environment, a solid phase extraction procedure has been optimized and developed to extract and preconcentrate the analytes. Determination and quantification were performed by ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). The method developed presents satisfactory limits of detection (between 0.15 and 9.35 ng·L(-1)), good recoveries (between 73 and 90% for the most of compounds), and low relative standard deviations (under 8.4%). Samples from influents and effluents of two wastewater treatment plants of Gran Canaria (Spain) were analyzed using the proposed method, finding several hormones with concentrations ranged from 5 to 300 ng·L(-1).

An assessment of the concentrations of pharmaceutical compounds in wastewater treatment plants on the island of Gran Canaria (Spain)

An assessment of the concentrations of thirteen different therapeutic pharmaceutical compounds was conducted on water samples obtained from different wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) using solid phase extraction and high- and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry detection (HPLC-MS/MS and UHPLC-MS/MS), was carried out. The target compounds included ketoprofen and naproxen (anti-inflammatories), bezafibrate (lipid-regulating), carbamazepine (anticonvulsant), metamizole (analgesic), atenolol (β-blocker), paraxanthine (stimulant), fluoxetine (antidepressant), and levofloxacin, norfloxacin, ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin and sarafloxacin (fluoroquinolone antibiotics). The relative standard deviations obtained in method were below 11%, while the detection and quantification limits were in the range of 0.3 - 97.4 ng·L(-1) and 1.1 - 324.7 ng·L(-1), respectively. The water samples were collected from two different WWTPs located on the island of Gran Canaria in Spain over a period of one year. The first WWTP (denoted as WWTP1) used conventional activated sludge for the treatment of wastewater, while the other plant (WWTP2) employed a membrane bioreactor system for wastewater treatment. Most of the pharmaceutical compounds detected in this study during the sampling periods were found to have concentrations ranging between 0.02 and 34.81 μg·L(-1).

Determination and assessment of estradiol-mimicking compounds in the dissolved and particulate phases of wastewater treatment plant samples

During the last two decades, a large number of publications have clearly shown that anthropogenic compounds that disrupt the endocrine system of wildlife species are a major cause for concern, and this concern has led to a demand for new screening methods. In this work, we have optimized and applied a new method to identify endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), such as nonylphenol, octylphenol, and their corresponding ethoxylates, 17alpha-ethynylestradiol, bisphenol-A, 17beta-estradiol, and estriol, in sewage samples. For the extraction and preconcentration of all analytes from the dissolved and particulate phases, we used SPE and ultrasonic assisted extraction, respectively. Identification and quantification were achieved by HPLC with fluorescence detection. Satisfactory LODs (between 0.5 and 7.6 ng/L in the dissolved phase and 12.3 and 21.4 ng/g in the particulate phase) and analyte recoveries (between 67 and 102%) were achieved for the target compounds. The optimized method was applied to the determination of EDCs in liquid sewage samples collected from July 2009 to July 2010 from a wastewater treatment plant in Las Palmas de G.C. (Spain). Concentrations of EDCs ranged from <10 to nearly 1300 ng/L in the dissolved phase, and from 0.1 to 7.7 microg/g in the suspended particulate matter.