Complex Mixtures, Complex Responses—Using Comprehensive Approaches to Assess Pharmaceutical Effects on Fish Completed
Fathead Minnows
Field Exposure Setup at a Wastewater Treatment Plant
The occurrence of complex mixtures of prescription pharmaceuticals in streams and rivers around the globe has raised concerns about potential unintended adverse effects on aquatic organisms. The deleterious effects (for example, alteration of fish behavior) observed in this study confirm that effluents containing pharmaceuticals can adversely affect fish in ways that are central to sustaining populations and that the effects may not be temporally consistent.
Prescription pharmaceuticals have been found in streams and lakes throughout the United States. They enter aquatic ecosystems primarily through treated municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent following human excretion or disposal of unwanted pharmaceuticals into the sewer system. Pharmaceuticals and their transformation products are generally present in low concentrations (less than 100 nanograms per liter) in most treated municipal wastewater effluents, but according to previous U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) research, they can be locally elevated in the effluent at WWTPs that receive incoming waste from pharmaceutical formulation facilities.
The present collaborative study between St. Cloud State University and USGS scientists used a comprehensive set of biological endpoints and minnow life stages in laboratory and field exposures to better understand the effects of pharmaceuticals on larval and adult fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas). This type of minnow was chosen because they are a common laboratory model for studies of this kind and are also an ecologically important species present throughout North America.
Larval and adult fathead minnows were exposed to treated municipal effluent from a WWTP known to receive input from a pharmaceutical formulation facility. In addition, both life stages were also exposed in the laboratory to the following nine pharmaceuticals individually or in mixtures: temazepam, a sleep aid; methocarbamol, a muscle relaxant; tramadol, an opioid agonist; hydrocodone, methadone, and oxycodone, opioids; and fluoxetine, paroxetine, and venlafaxine-antidepressants. The selected pharmaceuticals and corresponding exposure levels were guided by the previous USGS research.
The complexity of the effluent and laboratory exposures resulted in comparable complex biological responses. Juvenile fathead minnows exposed to the chemicals suffered from reduced growth and altered escape behavior. The altered escape behavior means that, when faced with a threat, the minnows did not escape as efficiently as they normally would, which could potentially increase the chances they would be eaten and could ultimately translate to population-level effects.
Adult fish reacted differently than juvenile fish to exposures. Adult females exposed to a mixture of the pharmaceuticals generally experienced an increase in relative liver size compared to control females, which suggests that the liver is reacting to pharmaceutical exposure. Adult males exposed to the pharmaceuticals had a variety of reactions. Most did not defend their nests as rigorously as those that were not exposed to the pharmaceuticals. The males exposed to WWTP effluent in the field component of this research produced a chemical known as plasma vitellogenin, a protein associated with egg production in females and not present in male fish under normal conditions.
This study documents that treated effluent containing pharmaceuticals and exposures to pharmaceuticals in a laboratory study can affect fish behavior and other biological endpoints. This study highlights the importance of including diverse biological endpoints spanning levels of biological organization and life stages when assessing the effects of pharmaceuticals. The environmental concentrations of prescription pharmaceuticals are usually below human or domestic animal therapeutic concentrations; however, these lower concentrations may still have effects on aquatic organisms that are exposed on a continual basis.
This study is part of a long-term effort by the USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program to determine the fate and effects of contaminants of emerging concern and to provide water-resource managers with objective information that assists in the development of effective water management practices. Understanding the impacts of environmental pharmaceutical occurrence in aquatic ecosystems may allow for effective strategies to reduce organism exposures.
This research was funded by the USGS Ecosystems Mission Area’s Environmental Health Program (Contaminant Biology and Toxic Substances Hydrology) and supported by the National Science Foundation (CBET 1336062).
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Pharmaceutical fish: SCSU experiments: St. Cloud Times, December 2, 2015, news story (Hypertext links and other references to non-USGS products and services are provided for information only and do not constitute endorsement or warranty by the USGS, U.S. Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government)
Chemicals Found in Treated Wastewater are Transported from Streams to Groundwater
Pharmaceuticals and Other Chemicals Common in Landfill Waste
Neuroactive Pharmaceuticals in Minnesota Rivers
Biological Activity of Steroid Hormones in U.S. Streams
Complex Mixture of Contaminants Persists in Streams Miles from the Source
Improvements in Wastewater Treatment Reduces Endocrine Disruption in Fish
Antibiotics in Groundwater Affect Natural Bacteria
Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals in the Slick Scum that Covers Stones in Streams
Hormones Degrade in the Environment!
Manufacturing Facilities Release Pharmaceuticals to the Environment
Measuring Antidepressants, Fungicides, and Insecticides in the Environment
Emerging Contaminants Targeted in a Reconnaissance of Ground Water and Untreated Drinking-Water Sources
Below are publications associated with this project.
Below are news stories associated with this project.
- Overview
The occurrence of complex mixtures of prescription pharmaceuticals in streams and rivers around the globe has raised concerns about potential unintended adverse effects on aquatic organisms. The deleterious effects (for example, alteration of fish behavior) observed in this study confirm that effluents containing pharmaceuticals can adversely affect fish in ways that are central to sustaining populations and that the effects may not be temporally consistent.
Prescription pharmaceuticals have been found in streams and lakes throughout the United States. They enter aquatic ecosystems primarily through treated municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent following human excretion or disposal of unwanted pharmaceuticals into the sewer system. Pharmaceuticals and their transformation products are generally present in low concentrations (less than 100 nanograms per liter) in most treated municipal wastewater effluents, but according to previous U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) research, they can be locally elevated in the effluent at WWTPs that receive incoming waste from pharmaceutical formulation facilities.
The present collaborative study between St. Cloud State University and USGS scientists used a comprehensive set of biological endpoints and minnow life stages in laboratory and field exposures to better understand the effects of pharmaceuticals on larval and adult fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas). This type of minnow was chosen because they are a common laboratory model for studies of this kind and are also an ecologically important species present throughout North America.
Larval and adult fathead minnows were exposed to treated municipal effluent from a WWTP known to receive input from a pharmaceutical formulation facility. In addition, both life stages were also exposed in the laboratory to the following nine pharmaceuticals individually or in mixtures: temazepam, a sleep aid; methocarbamol, a muscle relaxant; tramadol, an opioid agonist; hydrocodone, methadone, and oxycodone, opioids; and fluoxetine, paroxetine, and venlafaxine-antidepressants. The selected pharmaceuticals and corresponding exposure levels were guided by the previous USGS research.
The complexity of the effluent and laboratory exposures resulted in comparable complex biological responses. Juvenile fathead minnows exposed to the chemicals suffered from reduced growth and altered escape behavior. The altered escape behavior means that, when faced with a threat, the minnows did not escape as efficiently as they normally would, which could potentially increase the chances they would be eaten and could ultimately translate to population-level effects.
Adult fish reacted differently than juvenile fish to exposures. Adult females exposed to a mixture of the pharmaceuticals generally experienced an increase in relative liver size compared to control females, which suggests that the liver is reacting to pharmaceutical exposure. Adult males exposed to the pharmaceuticals had a variety of reactions. Most did not defend their nests as rigorously as those that were not exposed to the pharmaceuticals. The males exposed to WWTP effluent in the field component of this research produced a chemical known as plasma vitellogenin, a protein associated with egg production in females and not present in male fish under normal conditions.
This study documents that treated effluent containing pharmaceuticals and exposures to pharmaceuticals in a laboratory study can affect fish behavior and other biological endpoints. This study highlights the importance of including diverse biological endpoints spanning levels of biological organization and life stages when assessing the effects of pharmaceuticals. The environmental concentrations of prescription pharmaceuticals are usually below human or domestic animal therapeutic concentrations; however, these lower concentrations may still have effects on aquatic organisms that are exposed on a continual basis.
This study is part of a long-term effort by the USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program to determine the fate and effects of contaminants of emerging concern and to provide water-resource managers with objective information that assists in the development of effective water management practices. Understanding the impacts of environmental pharmaceutical occurrence in aquatic ecosystems may allow for effective strategies to reduce organism exposures.
This research was funded by the USGS Ecosystems Mission Area’s Environmental Health Program (Contaminant Biology and Toxic Substances Hydrology) and supported by the National Science Foundation (CBET 1336062).
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Pharmaceutical fish: SCSU experiments: St. Cloud Times, December 2, 2015, news story (Hypertext links and other references to non-USGS products and services are provided for information only and do not constitute endorsement or warranty by the USGS, U.S. Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government)
Filter Total Items: 27Chemicals Found in Treated Wastewater are Transported from Streams to Groundwater
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists studying a midwestern stream conclude that pharmaceuticals and other contaminants in treated wastewater effluent discharged to the stream are transported into adjacent shallow groundwater. Other mobile chemicals found in wastewater are expected to have similar fates.Pharmaceuticals and Other Chemicals Common in Landfill Waste
Landfill leachate contains a variety of chemicals that reflect our daily activities, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists concluded as a result of a nationwide study. Landfills are a common disposal mechanism for our Nation's solid waste from residential, commercial, and industrial sources. The scientists found that pharmaceuticals, personal-care products, and other contaminants of emerging...Neuroactive Pharmaceuticals in Minnesota Rivers
A team of scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the University of Colorado measured seven neuroactive pharmaceutical compounds in treated wastewater and downstream receiving waters at 24 sites across Minnesota. The analysis of samples collected upstream and downstream of wastewater treatment plants indicated that wastewater treatment plants were the major source of these chemicals.Biological Activity of Steroid Hormones in U.S. Streams
Testing of U.S. streams has detected glucocorticoid and androgen biological activity. In a collaborative study between the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Laboratory of Receptor Biology and Gene Expression, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and others, scientists studied the potential for the biological activity in streams of glucocorticoids and androgens hormones—both potential endocrine...Complex Mixture of Contaminants Persists in Streams Miles from the Source
Natural processes in stream ecosystems such as dilution and microbial degradation are known to attenuate some contaminants to below levels that can cause harm to ecosystems. However, a team of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists has shown that many chemicals discharged from municipal wastewater treatment facilities persist for miles downstream at levels known, or suspected, to cause adverse...Improvements in Wastewater Treatment Reduces Endocrine Disruption in Fish
A team of scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the University of Colorado, and the City of Boulder, Colorado, demonstrated that improvements to the treatment process at a wastewater treatment facility (WWTF) reduced the level of endocrine disruption in fish exposed to wastewater effluent discharged from the facility. It is difficult to anticipate the effects that upgrading WWTF...Antibiotics in Groundwater Affect Natural Bacteria
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists have documented adverse health effects on populations of native soil bacteria exposed to levels of the antibiotic (SMX) below those used to treat diseases (subtherapeutic). Because SMX has been found in environmental waters by many previous studies, the scientists conducted laboratory exposure experiments to determine the effect of SMX on native bacteria...Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals in the Slick Scum that Covers Stones in Streams
The slick scum or biofilm that covers most rocks in streams can accumulate contaminants that disrupt reproductive and other endocrine systems in fish. This is the finding of a team of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and University of Colorado Boulder scientists as described in a recent article in Environmental Science and Technology ( Writer and others, 2011 ). Biofilms are a mixture of algae...Hormones Degrade in the Environment!
In two separate studies, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists demonstrated that hormones such as estrogen can biodegrade in stream and groundwater environments. This is an important finding because the science, regulatory, and environmental communities have concerns about the environmental fate of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, such as hormones, in the human wastewaters discharged to the...Manufacturing Facilities Release Pharmaceuticals to the Environment
In a 2004-2009 study, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists found that pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities can be a significant source of pharmaceuticals to the environment. Effluents from two wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) that receive discharge from pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities (PMFs) had 10 to 1000 times higher concentrations of pharmaceuticals than effluents from 24...Measuring Antidepressants, Fungicides, and Insecticides in the Environment
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists are developing new laboratory analytical methods to measure contaminants in samples of environmental water, sediment, and soil. The work is part of a continuing effort to provide information on new and understudied contaminants to water-resource managers, environmental regulators, and the public. The new methods are used by USGS scientists and others to...Emerging Contaminants Targeted in a Reconnaissance of Ground Water and Untreated Drinking-Water Sources
Two national-scale reconnaissance studies recently conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) were the first to collect baseline information on the environmental occurrence of pharmaceuticals, personal-care products, detergents, flame retardants, naturally occurring sterols, and other organic contaminants in ground water and untreated sources of drinking water in the United States. These... - Publications
Below are publications associated with this project.
- News
Below are news stories associated with this project.