TY - JOUR
T1 - Wastewater-based epidemiology and enantiomeric profiling for drugs of abuse in South African wastewaters
AU - Archer, E.
AU - Castrignanò, E.
AU - Kasprzyk-Hordern, B.
AU - Wolfaardt, G. M.
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was supported by the East Rand Water Care Company (ERWAT) (Project number: R1634); the South African Water Research Commission (Project number: K5/2733//3); and the EPSRC Global Challenges Research Fund (Project number: EP/P028403/1). We would also like to thank the personnel from ERWAT and the City of Cape Town Municipality (CCT) for providing the infrastructure, equipment and assistance with the sampling campaigns at the WWTWs.
Funding Information:
This study was supported by the East Rand Water Care Company (ERWAT) (Project number: R1634 ); the South African Water Research Commission (Project number: K5/2733//3 ); and the EPSRC Global Challenges Research Fund (Project number: EP/P028403/1 ). We would also like to thank the personnel from ERWAT and the City of Cape Town Municipality (CCT) for providing the infrastructure, equipment and assistance with the sampling campaigns at the WWTWs.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2017
PY - 2018/6/1
Y1 - 2018/6/1
N2 - The current study is aimed to introduce a wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) approach for the first time on the African continent where substance abuse data is limited. The study included the quantification of several drugs of abuse (DOA) in raw wastewater samples. Quantification of urinary metabolites as drug target residues (DTR), as well as enantiomeric profiling of chiral DOA was performed to distinguish between consumption and direct disposal into sewage. Monitoring campaigns were undertaken at two South African wastewater treatment works (WWTWs) located within two provinces of the country. The presence of non-racemic 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and methamphetamine, as well as the metabolite of cocaine, benzoylecgonine (BEG), confirmed their consumption within the areas investigated. Enantiomeric profiling further pointed to the abuse of methamphetamine as the primary DOA with use estimates calculated between 181.9 and 1184.8 mg·day− 1·1000 inhabitants− 1. Population-normalised mass loads for MDMA and cocaine confirmed their status as secondary DOA within the study sites. Use estimates for the new psychoactive substance (NPS) mephedrone were performed for one WWTW. The minor metabolite of heroin, O-6-monoacetylmorphine (O-6-MAM), was also detected at one WWTW and served as a qualitative indicator for heroin abuse within the area. These findings provide a novel comparison of the WBE approach in a developing-country with other global studies, with the aim to strengthen this approach as a tool to inform drug prevention strategies in countries where substance abuse data is limited due to financial constraints and lack of government structures to facilitate conventional monitoring.
AB - The current study is aimed to introduce a wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) approach for the first time on the African continent where substance abuse data is limited. The study included the quantification of several drugs of abuse (DOA) in raw wastewater samples. Quantification of urinary metabolites as drug target residues (DTR), as well as enantiomeric profiling of chiral DOA was performed to distinguish between consumption and direct disposal into sewage. Monitoring campaigns were undertaken at two South African wastewater treatment works (WWTWs) located within two provinces of the country. The presence of non-racemic 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and methamphetamine, as well as the metabolite of cocaine, benzoylecgonine (BEG), confirmed their consumption within the areas investigated. Enantiomeric profiling further pointed to the abuse of methamphetamine as the primary DOA with use estimates calculated between 181.9 and 1184.8 mg·day− 1·1000 inhabitants− 1. Population-normalised mass loads for MDMA and cocaine confirmed their status as secondary DOA within the study sites. Use estimates for the new psychoactive substance (NPS) mephedrone were performed for one WWTW. The minor metabolite of heroin, O-6-monoacetylmorphine (O-6-MAM), was also detected at one WWTW and served as a qualitative indicator for heroin abuse within the area. These findings provide a novel comparison of the WBE approach in a developing-country with other global studies, with the aim to strengthen this approach as a tool to inform drug prevention strategies in countries where substance abuse data is limited due to financial constraints and lack of government structures to facilitate conventional monitoring.
KW - Chirality
KW - Illicit drugs
KW - Metabolites
KW - Substance abuse
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85039997786&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.12.269
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.12.269
M3 - Article
C2 - 29306167
AN - SCOPUS:85039997786
SN - 0048-9697
VL - 625
SP - 792
EP - 800
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
ER -
