Title
Bioavailability and biodegradation of nonylphenol in sediment determined with chemical and bioanalysis
Author
de Weert, J.
de la Cal, A.
van den Berg, H.
Murk, A.
Langenhoff, A.
Rijnaarts, H.
Grotenhuis, T.
TNO Bouw en Ondergrond
Publication year
2008
Abstract
The surfactant nonylphenol (NP) is an endocrine-disrupting compound that is widely spread throughout the environment. Although environmental risk assessments are based on total NP concentrations, only the bioavailable fraction posses an environmental risk. The present study describes the bioavailability and biodegradability of NP over time in contaminated river sediment of a tributary of the Ebro River in Spain. The bioavailable fraction was collected with Tenax TA® beads, and biodegradation was determined in aerobic batch experiments. The presence of NP was analyzed chemically using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and indirectly as estrogenic potency using an in vitro reporter gene assay (ERα-luc assay). Of the total extractable NP in the sediment, 95% ± 1.5% (mean ± standard error) desorbed quickly into the water phase. By aerobic biodegradation, the total extractable NP concentration and the estrogenic activity were reduced by 97% ±0.5% and 94% ± 2%, respectively. The easily biodegradable fraction equals the potential bioavailable fraction. Only 43 to 86% of the estrogenic activity in the total extractable fraction, as detected in the ERα-luc assay, could be explained by the present NP concentration. This indicates that other estrogenic compounds were present and that their bioavailability and aerobic degradation were similar to that of NP. Therefore, we propose to use NP as an indicator compound to monitor estrogenicity of this Ebro River sediment. To what extent this conclusion holds for other river sediments depends on the composition of the contaminants and/or the nature of these sediments and requires further testing. © 2008 SETAC.
Subject
Geosciences
Aerobic biodegradation
Bioavailability
Estrogenic activity
Nonylphenol
Biodegradability
Biodegradation
Environmental protection
Gas chromatography
Mass spectrometry
Risk assessment
Sediments
Aerobic biodegradation
Bioanalysis
Estrogenic activity
Nonylphenol
Phenols
estradiol
nonylphenol
petroleum
surfactant
bioassay
bioavailability
biodegradation
endocrine disruptor
environmental risk
estrogenic compound
fluvial deposit
oxic conditions
phenolic compound
risk assessment
sediment analysis
sediment pollution
surfactant
toxicity test
adsorption
article
bioavailability
biodegradation
bioremediation
chemical analysis
desorption
dry weight
estrogen activity
extraction
isomer
mass fragmentography
priority journal
risk assessment
river
sediment
solid phase microextraction
Spain
Biodegradation, Environmental
Biological Availability
Estrogens
Geologic Sediments
Models, Biological
Phenols
Water Pollutants, Chemical
Ebro River
Eurasia
Europe
Southern Europe
Spain
To reference this document use:
http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:ee5e0a32-42cf-4df3-aadd-b77c5f38accd
TNO identifier
240739
ISSN
0730-7268
Source
Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 27 (4), 778-785
Document type
article