Occurrence, sources and environmental risk assessment of pharmaceuticals in the Sea of Marmara, Turkey

• Published in: The Science of the total environment Vol. 819; p. 152996
• Main Authors: Korkmaz, Nagihan E., Savun-Hekimoğlu, Başak, Aksu, Abdullah, Burak, Selmin, Caglar, Nuray Balkis
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01-05-2022
• Subjects: Ecosystem; Emerging contaminants; Environmental Monitoring - methods; Humans; Pharmaceutical Preparations; Pharmaceuticals; Risk Assessment; Sea of Marmara; Seawater; Turkey; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; Turkey; Sea of Marmara; Risk assessment; Emerging contaminants; Pharmaceuticals; Seawater
• ISSN: 0048-9697; 1879-1026
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152996

In the present study, the occurrence and spatial distribution of selected eleven pharmaceuticals were investigated in the Sea of Marmara, Turkey. Samples were collected from different depths of the nine stations in April and October 2019. Pharmaceuticals were analyzed using liquid-liquid and solid-phase extraction (SPE) methods followed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). All target pharmaceutical compounds were detected at least once in the study area. Gemfibrozil, which belongs to the lipid regulatory group, was the most frequently detected in seawater at high concentrations (<0.016–9.71 μg/L). Ibuprofen (<0.015–2.13 μg/L) and 17α-ethynylestradiol (<0.010–3.55 μg/L) were identified as the other frequently detected pharmaceuticals. In addition, the presence of these selected compounds in April was higher than in October. According to the risk assessment results, naproxen, diclofenac, clofibric acid, gemfibrozil, 17β-estradiol, and 17α-ethynylestradiol represent a high risk to aquatic organisms in the Sea of Marmara. These findings underline the importance of continued monitoring of these compounds as relevant organic contaminants in the study area to take appropriate measures to protect the ecosystem and, ultimately, human health.
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•11 pharmaceuticals were investigated in the Sea of Marmara, Turkey.•Gemfibrozil was measured at the highest concentration levels.•Ibuprofen and 17α-ethynylestradiol were frequently detected in the seawater.•Naproxen, diclofenac, clofibric acid, gemfibrozil, 17β-estradiol and 17α-ethynylestradiol might be a risk for aquatic life.•The basic and first report on pharmaceutical pollution in the Sea of Marmara ecosystem