Drug components known as active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) have polluted rivers around the world, posing “a global threat to the environment and human health,” warns a study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Within the framework of this scientific work, carried out by researchers from dozens of countries and led by the University of York (United Kingdom), the presence of 61 APIs along 258 rivers in 104 nations on all continents was analyzed. While previous studies had monitored concentrations of active pharmaceutical ingredients in river water, these were generally done in North America, Europe and China, and tested for a few contaminants, so their results would show just the tip of the iceberg, the new report says. research.
APIs enter the environment during their manufacture, use, or disposal. The highest concentrations of drug components were detected in rivers in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and South America. The most contaminated sites were found in lower-middle income countries and were associated with poor wastewater and garbage treatment infrastructure, as well as areas with pharmaceutical facilities.
The pharmaceutical products that were found the most
The APIs that were found the most were, among others, the anticonvulsant drug carbamazepine, the antidiabetic drug metformin, the antibacterial drug sulfamethoxazole, the antibiotic ciprofloxacin, the antiallergic drug loratadine, and caffeine (a compound that also arises from lifestyle use).
It was revealed that in more than a quarter of the places where the samples were collected, the concentrations of at least one API exceeded the levels considered safe for aquatic organisms. Another reason for concern is that this situation can favor the possible appearance of bacteria resistant to antibiotics.
“We’ve known for more than two decades that pharmaceuticals find their way into the aquatic environment, where they can affect the biology of living organisms. But one of the biggest problems we’ve faced in addressing this issue is that we haven’t been very representative.” monitoring these pollutants, with almost all of the data focused on a few select areas,” said John Wilkinson, one of the lead authors of the study.
