Ecotoxicity of Nitrogen, Sulfur, or Oxygen Heterocycles and Short-Chained Alkyl Phenols Commonly Detected in Contaminated Groundwater

Citations Over Time

Abstract

Nitrogen, sulfur, or oxygen heterocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (NSO-HETs) and short-chained alkyl phenols (SCAPs) are commonly detected in groundwater at contaminated sites and in the surrounding environment. It is now scientific consensus that these chemicals pose a risk to human and ecosystem health. However, toxicity data are comparably fragmentary, and only few studies have addressed the ecotoxicity of NSO-HETs and SCAPs in a systematic and comparative fashion. To overcome this shortcoming, we tested 18 SCAPs, 16 NSO-HETs, as well as the homocyclic hydrocarbons indane and indene in the Microtox® assay with Aliivibrio fischeri, the growth inhibition test with Desmodesmus subspicatus, the acute immobilization assay with Daphnia magna, as well as the fish embryo toxicity test with embryos of the zebrafish (Danio rerio). Because of the physicochemical properties of the tested chemicals (limited water solubility, volatility, and sorption to test vessels), actual exposure concentrations in test media and their dissipation over time were analytically quantified by means of gas chromatography with mass spectrometry. Analytically corrected effect levels (median effect and lethal concentrations) ranged from 0.017 to 180 mg L-1 , underlining the environmental relevance of some NSO-HETs and SCAPs. Para-substituted phenols showed the overall greatest toxicities in all 4 toxicity tests. We provide, for the first time, a complete high-quality data set in support of better environmental risk assessments of these chemicals. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:1343-1355. © 2019 SETAC.

Related Papers

• → Comparative assessment of acute and chronic ecotoxicity of water soluble fractions of diesel and biodiesel on Daphnia magna and Aliivibrio fischeri(2019)31 cited
• → Critical evaluation and further development of methods for testing ecotoxicity at multiple pH using Daphnia magna and Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata(2012)20 cited
• → Acute Toxicities of Penta-BDE in TiO<sub>2</sub> Nanoparticle Suspensions to <i>Daphnia magna</i>(2013)7 cited
• → Characteristics and Toxicity Sensitivity of Korean Dominant Species Daphnia galeata for Ecotoxicity Testing: Comparative Study with Daphnia magna(2016)5 cited
• → Effects of environmental factors on graphene oxide ecotoxicity towards crustacean Daphnia magna(2018)