Acute toxicity of widely used pharmaceuticals in aquatic species: Gambusia holbrooki, Artemia parthenogenetica and Tetraselmis chuii

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2005

Authors

Nunes, B (Author) Other; Carvalho, F (Author) FFUP; Guilhermino, L (Author) ICBAS

Journal

Title: Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety

Vol. 61

Pages: 413-419

ISSN: 0147-6513

Publisher: Elsevier

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 62 Citations

Scopus - 79 Citations

Scientific classification

FOS: Medical and Health sciences > Basic medicine

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-000-2GS

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2004.08.010

Abstract (EN): Pharmaceuticals are continuously dispersed into the environment as a result of human and veterinary use, posing relevant environmental concerns. This study evaluated the acute toxicity of three therapeutic agents (diazepam, clofibrate, and clofibric acid) and a detergent (sodium dodecyl sulfate; SDS) in three aquatic species, namely the euryhaline fish Gambusia holbrooki, the hypersaline crustacean Artemia parthenogenetica, and the marine algae Tetraselmis chuii. The ranking of 50% lethal concentrations (LC(50)) for the two animal species and 50% inhibitory concentration (IC(50)) for the algal species was, in decreasing order, clofibric acid > SDS > diazepam > clofibrate for G. holbrooki, clofibric acid > clofibrate > SDS > diazepam for A. parthenogenetica, and clofibric acid > clofibrate > SDS > diazepam for T. chuii. These differences show that the intrinsic nature of test organisms must be considered when evaluating the toxicity of these agents to aquatic ecosystems.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 7