engleski

Negative environmental impacts of effluents from pharmaceutical industry

Effluents from pharmaceutical industries are recognised as the most important contributors to aquatic pollution with pharmaceuticals which could have potential negative impact on biological balance of natural environments. To gain insight into this impact, we performed chemical, microbiological and ecotoxicological analyses of effluents from a local pharmaceutical industry which had a long tradition in manufacturing the macrolide antibiotic azithromycin. The effluents were collected on two occasions in 2016, in winter and in spring. We measured high concentrations of azithromycin, N-desmethyl azithromycin and dehydrated erythromycin in the effluents (in the range of mg/L). Further, we found extremely high frequency of azithromycin-resistant bacteria (> 70%) in studied effluents. Finally, we showed the high toxicity of effluents to diverse freshwater organisms. Toxicity to algae and Daphnia greatly exceeded the values permitted by legislation. In zebrafish embryos, undiluted wastewater caused 100% mortality, while diluted samples induced multiple developmental defects, such as reduced hatching rate. In conclusion, using a wide array of analyses we have demonstrated that discharges of pharmaceutical industry may pose a significant ecological and public health concern due to their high toxicity to aquatic biota and the potential to promote global spread of antibiotic resistance.

antibiotic resistance ; antibiotics ; pharmaceutical effluent ; ecotoxicity

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