Performance and mechanism of diclofenac adsorption onto 3D poly(m-phenylenediamine)-grafted melamine foam via batch experiment and theoretical studies.

Seeking highly efficient adsorbents for pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) removal has been a worldwide continuing endeavor. In this study, a new 3D composite material was synthesized by covalently anchoring Poly(m-Phenylenediamine) onto 3D polyvinyl alcohol modified foam framework (PmPD-MF-PVA). PmPD-MF-PVA was characterized and evaluated for its efficacy in removing diclofenac (DCF), a commonly detected PPCPs in both wastewater and surface water. Results showed that the adsorption capacity of PmPD-MF-PVA toward DCF was 1.5 times higher than that of PmPD-MF. The addition of PVA increased deposition area of PmPD, and promoted PmPD loading on the foam surface. Batch adsorption experiments exhibited that the adsorption of DCF was fitted well with Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic models. The maximum adsorption capacity of PmPD-MF-PVA was 115 mg/g. Meanwhile, PmPD-MF-PVA exhibited better separation ability than the hard-to-separate PmPD. Characterization analysis and density functional theory (DFT) calculation elucidated the main mechanisms of DCF adsorption on PmPD-MF-PVA. Hydrogen bonding and π-π interactions were main drivers for DCF adsorption, followed by electrostatic attraction and hydrophobic forces. This study provides an effective strategy to overcome the drawbacks of PmPD, such as recycling difficulty and agglomeration problems, offering valuable insights for the design of polymers-based adsorbents.

CRISPR/Cas: a powerful tool for designing and improving oil crops.

Improving oil yield and quality is a major goal for crop breeding, and CRISPR/Cas-mediated genome editing has opened a new era for designing oil crops with enhanced yield and quality. CRISPR/Cas technology can not only increase oil production but also enhance oil quality, including enhancing pharmaceutical and health components, improving oil nutrients, and removing allergic and toxic components. As new molecular targets for oil biosynthesis are discovered and the CRISPR/Cas system is further improved, CRISPR/Cas will become a better molecular tool for designing new oil crops with higher oil production, enhanced nutrients, and improved health components. 'CRISPRized' oil crops will have broad applications both in industry (e.g., as biofuels) and in daily human life.

Computational Modelling of the Impact of Evaporation on In-Vitro Dermal Absorption.

PURPOSE: Volatiles are common in personal care products and dermatological drugs. Determining the impact of evaporation of volatiles on skin permeation is crucial to evaluate and understand their delivery, bioavailability, efficacy and safety. We aim to develop an in-silico model to simulate the impact of evaporation on the dermal absorption of volatiles. METHOD: The evaporation of volatile permeants was modelled using vapour pressure as the main factor. This model considers evaporation as a passive diffusion process driven by the concentration gradient between the air-vehicle interface and the ambient environment. The evaporation model was then integrated with a previously published physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model of skin permeation and compared with published in vitro permeation test data from the Cosmetics Europe ADME Task Force. RESULTS: The evaporation-PBPK model shows improved predictions when evaporation is considered. In particular, good agreement has been obtained for the distributions in the evaporative loss, and the overall percutaneous absorption. The model is further compared with published in-silico models from the Cosmetics Europe ADME Task Force where favourable results are achieved. CONCLUSION: The evaporation of volatile permeants under finite dose in vitro permeation test conditions has been successfully predicted using a mechanistic model with the intrinsic volatility parameter vapour pressure. Integrating evaporation in PBPK modelling significantly improved the prediction of dermal delivery.

Recommendations for Interchangeability in a Growing Biosimilar Market in Latin America.

BACKGROUND: Biosimilars offer significant advantages for improving access to biologic treatments in Latin America. However, their uptake has been slow due to misconceptions, regulatory uncertainties, and inadequate pharmacovigilance. OBJECTIVE: To address these issues, Americas Health Foundation convened a multidisciplinary panel of regional experts in biosimilar use and interchangeability from Latin America. The panel assessed the current landscape and recommended steps to enhance access. RESULTS: Key recommendations include strengthening biosimilar regulations, ensuring transparent enforcement, implementing robust pharmacovigilance, and promoting collaboration among stakeholders to educate about the safety, efficacy, and economic advantages of biosimilars and their interchangeability. CONCLUSIONS: By embracing biosimilars and interchangeability, Latin American countries can expand patient access, foster competition, diversify treatment sources, and enhance the sustainability of their healthcare systems. However, achieving these goals requires addressing knowledge gaps and biases among healthcare providers, patients, regulators, and government agencies. This can be accomplished through clear communication and the use of real-world evidence.

Biosimilars offer an opportunity to expand access to crucial biologic treatments in Latin America by providing lower-cost alternatives when patents expire. However, adopting biosimilars has been slow due to misconceptions and regulatory uncertainties. To address this, experts recommend considering approved biosimilars as interchangeable with reference products, allowing for switching without compromising safety or efficacy, with the limitation of switching only once per year. To improve access, well-defined regulations, enforcement, and transparency from regulatory agencies are necessary, along with education for healthcare providers, patients, and other stakeholders to address knowledge gaps and negative perceptions. Improved pharmacovigilance systems and collaboration between stakeholders can help communicate the benefits of biosimilars and interchangeability. By embracing biosimilars, Latin American countries can expand patient access, foster market competition, diversify treatment options, and improve the sustainability of healthcare systems.

Demonstration of an End-To-End Workflow Using Atmospheric Solids Analysis Probe-Mass Spectrometry (ASAP-MS) With Real-Time Sample Recognition Software for the Identification of Falsified and Substandard Pharmaceutical Tablets.

Counterfeit pharmaceuticals are a subclass of falsified and substandard medicines. They are illicit products, purporting to be genuine medicines, that are made and sold by criminal organisations. They represent a significant risk to patient safety, as well as a financial and reputational threat to the companies who make the genuine medicines. It is essential to have analytical methods to determine if suspect samples seized by law enforcement agencies are counterfeit, with mass spectrometry (MS) being a commonly used technique in forensic cases. Speed-to-answer is vital to enable law enforcement agencies to progress investigations, as well as for pharmaceutical companies so that they can notify health authorities of the circulation of counterfeit medicines. In this work, an atmospheric solids analysis probe (ASAP)-MS was assessed as a fast and simple-to-use approach to analyse tablets on a commercially available instrument. Complementing the analytics with real-time sample recognition software demonstrated that the classification of tablets as authentic or counterfeit could be achieved quickly (< 2 min) and without the need for MS interpretation skills. Authentication of five tablets (two authentic pharmaceuticals, one placebo and two counterfeits containing the correct active pharmaceutical ingredient [API] but at lower quantities than in the genuine medicine and with different excipient contents) of unknown origin was achieved with 100% success. This creates the opportunity to deploy the end-to-end workflow as a tool for non-scientists, such as law enforcement officers and border control staff, for use in-territory to obtain fast answers and make data-led decisions to control the illegal trading of medicines.

Exposure effects of synthetic glucocorticoid drugs on skeletal developmental and immune cell function in zebrafish.

Synthetic glucocorticoids (GCs) are used to treat a wide range of human health conditions and as such are frequently detected in the aquatic environment. This, together with the highly conserved nature of the glucocorticoid system across vertebrates means that the potential for biological effects of GCs in fish is relatively high. Here, we found that exposure of zebrafish (Danio rerio) to environmentally relevant concentrations of 4 of the most widely used synthetic GCs (beclomethasone dipropionate, budesonide, fluticasone propionate, and prednisolone), from 0 to 4 days post fertilisation (dpf), resulted in no effects on embryo-larval development or bone and cartilage formation. However, after exposure to equivalents of human therapeutic plasma levels, developmental abnormalities were observed that included pericardial oedema, blood pooling and alterations in jaw cartilage. Furthermore, using a double transgenic zebrafish osteoblast and chondrocyte reporter line, exposure up to 10 dpf resulted in alterations to lower jaw cartilage and bone development for all compounds at, and above, human therapeutic plasma concentrations. In the case of beclomethasone dipropionate, a reduction in lower jaw intercranial distance was observed at the environmentally relevant concentration of 0.1 µg/L. Using further transgenic reporter lines with fluorescently tagged neutrophils and macrophages, we also show exposure of embryo-larvae (0-4 dpf) to the GCs tested resulted in altered immune cell migration, but only at relatively high exposure concentrations. Collectively, our findings show GC exposure impacts embryo-larval zebrafish development, immune function, and skeletal formation, but predominantly at concentrations greater than those currently reported for the aquatic environment. Despite this, however, it is suggested that studies with longer exposure times, and to mixtures of multiple GCs (many GCs act via the same mechanism of action) are warranted before we can confidently assert that these commonly detected contaminants do not pose a risk to fish in the wild.

The antidepressant, sertraline, impacts growth and reproduction in the benthic deposit feeder, Tubifex tubifex.

Among emerging contaminants, pharmaceuticals are considered one of the most pertinent substances that may threaten aquatic ecosystems. Pharmaceuticals are designed to be directed at specific metabolic- and molecular pathways. Thus, they are assumed to be still biologically active when entering the ecosystem and may result in unpremeditated impacts on non-target organisms. One of the most widely used selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, sertraline (an antidepressant), is regularly found in aquatic environments. However, knowledge about the effects, and in particular, of sediment-associated sertraline in benthic invertebrates is limited. We examined the impacts of chronic exposure (28 d) to sediment-associated sertraline (3.3, 33, 330 µg/g dw sed.) on survival, growth and reproduction in the deposit-feeding oligochaete, Tubifex tubifex. Sertraline significantly decreased T. tubifex survival and growth. Worms exposed to high sertraline concentrations (330 µg/g) had a lower growth rate and reproduction, as indicated by a significantly lower number of cumulated cocoons. Worms exposed to an environmentally relevant concentration (3.3 µg/g) decreased growth but maintained a reproduction rate similar to that of the control. The implications are that adult worms exposed to high sertraline concentrations presumably required more energy for maintenance and detoxification, thereby reducing available energy for reproduction and growth. This represents a trade-off between survival, reproduction and growth. In contrast, T. tubifex exposed to environmentally relevant concentrations allocated more energy to reproduction by slightly increasing the number of cocoons produced and reducing growth. However, the quantity and quality of offspring may be impacted as we observed fewer juveniles in the environmentally relevant treatment than in the control. Overall, the results indicate that sediment-associated sertraline is bioavailable and negatively impacts T. tubifex survival, growth, and reproduction even at environmentally relevant concentrations.

Multi-biomarker approach for estimating population size in a national-scale wastewater-based epidemiology study.

This study identifies biochemical markers (BCIs) that can be used as population markers in wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) and compares their estimates with other established population size estimation (PE) methods, including census data (PECEN). Several groups of BCIs (64 targets: genetic and chemical markers) were investigated in an intercity study, including 10 cities/towns within England equating to a population of ∼7 million people. Several selection criteria were applied to identify the best BCIs to provide robust estimation of population size at a catchment level: (1) excellent performance with analytical methods; (2) excellent fit of the linear regression model which indicates PE-driven BCI daily loads; (3) low temporal variability in usage; (4) human-linked origin. Only a few tested BCIs showed a strong positive linear correlation between daily BCI loads and PE indicating their low spatiotemporal variability. These are: cimetidine, clarithromycin, metformin, cotinine, bezafibrate, metronidazole and hydroxymetronidazole, diclofenac, and benzophenone 1. However, only high/long term usage pharmaceuticals: cimetidine and metformin as well as cotinine (metabolite of nicotine) performed well when tested in two independent datasets and catchments accounting for both spatial and temporal scales. Strong seasonal usage trends were observed for antihistamines, NSAIDs (anti-inflammatories), antibiotics and UV filters, invalidating them as PE markers. Key conclusions from the study are: (1) Cimetidine is the best performing BCI; (2) Chemical markers outperform genetic markers as PE BCIs; (3) Water utility PE estimates (PEWW) align well with PECEN and PEBCI values; (4) Ammonium/orthophosphate as well as viral PE markers suffer from high temporal variability, hence, they are not recommended as PEBCI markers, and, most importantly, (5) PEBCI calibration/validation at the country/region level is advised in order to establish the best PE markers suited for local/national needs and accounting for site/region specific uncertainties.

The Influence of Solvent Choice on the Extraction of Bioactive Compounds from Asteraceae: A Comparative Review.

While the potential of Asteraceae plants as herbal remedies has been globally recognized, their widespread application in the food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries requires a deeper understanding of how extraction methods influence bioactive compound yields and functionalities. Previous research has primarily focused on the physiological activities or chemical compositions of individual Asteraceae species, often overlooking the critical role of solvent selection in optimizing extraction. Additionally, the remarkable physiological activities observed in these plants have spurred a growing number of clinical trials, aiming to validate their efficacy and safety for potential therapeutic and commercial applications. This work aims to bridge these knowledge gaps by providing an integrated analysis of extraction techniques, the diverse range of bioactive compounds present in Asteraceae, and the influence of solvent choice on isolating these valuable substances. By elucidating the interplay between extraction methods, solvent properties, and bioactivity, we underscore the promising potential of Asteraceae plants and highlight the importance of continued research, including clinical trials, to fully unlock their potential in the food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical sectors.

Hydrothermal preparation of pharmaceuticals adsorbents from chitin and chitosan: Optimization and mechanism.

Hydrothermal treatment of fishery waste-derived chitin (CT) and chitosan (CS) was performed to prepare hydrochar adsorbents for the removal of pharmaceuticals of environmental concern. By systematically studying the effect of treatment conditions on the biochar structure, the correlation between hydrochar properties and the adsorption capacities was clarified to optimize the adsorption performance. CS hydrochars obtained by lower-temperature treatment showed high adsorption capacities for the pharmaceuticals having carboxyl groups attributed to the electrostatic binding. A decrease in the density of available amines in CS hydrochars prepared at higher temperatures resulted in lower adsorption capacities and the manifestation of different adsorption mechanisms based on hydrophobic and π-π interactions. CT hydrochars showed lower adsorption capacities than CS hydrochars due to inefficient carbonization and lack of adsorption sites. The hydrochar adsorbents prepared in this study address simultaneously the problems of marine waste bioresource utilization and environmental cleaning from the emergent pollutants.

The Virtual Human Platform for Safety Assessment (VHP4Safety) project: Next generation chemical safety assessment based on human data.

The Virtual Human Platform for Safety Assessment (VHP4Safety) project aims to build a Virtual Human Platform (VHP) to protect human health and revolutionize the safety assessment of chemicals and pharmaceuticals by transitioning from animal-based to human-based approaches. The goal of this article is to introduce the project and its interdisciplinary approach to co-creation with multiple academic, regulatory, industrial and societal partners covering the entire safety assessment knowledge chain. Three research lines drive the project: 1) building the VHP; 2) feeding the VHP with human data; and 3) implementing the VHP. The project focusses on three case studies that incorporate human relevant scenarios not included in current animal-based safety assessment strategies. The VHP is built on tools and services, including pharmacokinetic and computational models, and integrates several data sources within each case study, including data on human physiology, epidemiology, toxicokinetic and -dynamic parameters, as well as data on chemical characteristics and exposures. In addition, the VHP integrates new data generated within the project using new approach methodologies representing key events within adverse outcome pathways. Implementation of the VHP is investigated using an innovation systems approach, engaging stakeholders and organizing training and education. Central to the VHP4Safety project is our co-creative approach, which facilitated by biannual designathons and hackathons that foster active involvement of all project participants from over 30 partner organizations. By integrating technological innovations with transparency and stakeholder collaboration, the VHP4Safety project will help shape the transition to the next generation safety assessment in which animal testing becomes redundant.

The Virtual Human Platform for Safety Assessment (VHP4Safety) project will build a virtual human platform (VHP) to determine the safety of chemicals and pharmaceuticals for human health based solely on human biology. By integrating innovations in data science, new approach methodologies and transition science, the VHP4Safety project will help shape the transition to safety assessment in which animal testing becomes redundant. This goal of this article is to introduce the project and its interdisciplinary approach to co-creation with multiple academic, regulatory, industrial and societal partners covering the entire safety assessment knowledge chain. We invite stakeholders who support our vision to collaborate and provide input, in order to enhance transparency and acceptance of the VHP in next generation safety assessment based on human data.

Exploring the Artificial Intelligence and Its Impact in Pharmaceutical Sciences: Insights Toward the Horizons Where Technology Meets Tradition.

The technological revolutions in computers and the advancement of high-throughput screening technologies have driven the application of artificial intelligence (AI) for faster discovery of drug molecules with more efficiency, and cost-friendly finding of hit or lead molecules. The ability of software and network frameworks to interpret molecular structures' representations and establish relationships/correlations has enabled various research teams to develop numerous AI platforms for identifying new lead molecules or discovering new targets for already established drug molecules. The prediction of biological activity, ADME properties, and toxicity parameters in early stages have reduced the chances of failure and associated costs in later clinical stages, which was observed at a high rate in the tedious, expensive, and laborious drug discovery process. This review focuses on the different AI and machine learning (ML) techniques with their applications mainly focused on the pharmaceutical industry. The applications of AI frameworks in the identification of molecular target, hit identification/hit-to-lead optimization, analyzing drug-receptor interactions, drug repurposing, polypharmacology, synthetic accessibility, clinical trial design, and pharmaceutical developments are discussed in detail. We have also compiled the details of various startups in AI in this field. This review will provide a comprehensive analysis and outline various state-of-the-art AI/ML techniques to the readers with their framework applications. This review also highlights the challenges in this field, which need to be addressed for further success in pharmaceutical applications.

Assessing the feasibility and likelihood of policy options to lower specialty drug costs.

Specialty drugs are high-cost medications often used to treat complex chronic conditions. Even with insurance coverage, patients may face very high out-of-pocket costs, which in turn may restrict access. While the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 included policies designed to reduce specialty drug costs, relatively few policies have been enacted during the past decade. In 2022-2023, we conducted a scoping literature review to identify a range of policy options and selected a set of 9 that have been regularly discussed or recently considered to present to an expert stakeholder panel to seek consensus on (1) the feasibility of implementing each policy and (2) its likely impact on drug costs. Experts rated only 1 policy highly on both feasibility and impact: grouping originator biologics and biosimilars under the same Medicare Part B reimbursement code. They rated 3 policies focused on setting payment limits as likely to have positive (downward) impact on costs but of uncertain feasibility. They considered 4 policies as uncertain on both criteria. Experts rated capping monthly out-of-pocket costs as feasible but unlikely to reduce specialty drug costs. Based on these results, we offer 4 recommendations to policymakers considering ways to reduce specialty drug costs.

The impact of EU public procurement regulations on tenders in Spain: a study with adalimumab.

Introduction: Pharmaceutical spending accounts for a significant portion of public healthcare budgets. To manage these costs, EU countries implement various cost-containment policies, including competitive tendering for pharmaceuticals. This study examines the impact of EU public procurement regulations on medication procurement practices. Methods: A search for all published tenders of adalimumab in Spain from 2018 to 2024 in the Spanish Public Sector Procurement Database, a period that coincides with the implementation of European legislation and the emergence of adalimumab biosimilars. All available documentation for each tender was reviewed, including the tender offer, technical specifications, specific administrative clauses, appointments of evaluation commissions, supporting memorandum, and evaluation reports. Results and Discussion: Our findings reveal substantial price reductions following the introduction of adalimumab biosimilars, yet highlight significant variability in tender criteria and practices across different regions. Despite adherence to EU directives, the inconsistent application of economic and non-economic factors and an erratic criteria concerning price undermine the intended balance of quality and cost, complicating procurement processes and potentially affecting the availability of a given treatment for patients.

Microbial degradation of contaminants of emerging concern: metabolic, genetic and omics insights for enhanced bioremediation.

The perpetual release of natural/synthetic pollutants into the environment poses major risks to ecological balance and human health. Amongst these, contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) are characterized by their recent introduction/detection in various niches, thereby causing significant hazards and necessitating their removal. Pharmaceuticals, plasticizers, cyanotoxins and emerging pesticides are major groups of CECs that are highly toxic and found to occur in various compartments of the biosphere. The sources of these compounds can be multipartite including industrial discharge, improper disposal, excretion of unmetabolized residues, eutrophication etc., while their fate and persistence are determined by factors such as physico-chemical properties, environmental conditions, biodegradability and hydrological factors. The resultant exposure of these compounds to microbiota has imposed a selection pressure and resulted in evolution of metabolic pathways for their biotransformation and/or utilization as sole source of carbon and energy. Such microbial degradation phenotype can be exploited to clean-up CECs from the environment, offering a cost-effective and eco-friendly alternative to abiotic methods of removal, thereby mitigating their toxicity. However, efficient bioprocess development for bioremediation strategies requires extensive understanding of individual components such as pathway gene clusters, proteins/enzymes, metabolites and associated regulatory mechanisms. "Omics" and "Meta-omics" techniques aid in providing crucial insights into the complex interactions and functions of these components as well as microbial community, enabling more effective and targeted bioremediation. Aside from natural isolates, metabolic engineering approaches employ the application of genetic engineering to enhance metabolic diversity and degradation rates. The integration of omics data will further aid in developing systemic-level bioremediation and metabolic engineering strategies, thereby optimising the clean-up process. This review describes bacterial catabolic pathways, genetics, and application of omics and metabolic engineering for bioremediation of four major groups of CECs: pharmaceuticals, plasticizers, cyanotoxins, and emerging pesticides.

A critical review of bioanalytical and clinical applications of solid phase microextraction.

Studying the functions, mechanisms, and effects of drugs and other exogenous compounds on biological systems, together with investigations performed to understand biosystems better, comprises one of the most fascinating areas of research. Although classical sample preparation techniques are dominantly used to infer the relevant information from the investigated system, they fail to meet various imperative requirements, such as being environmentally friendly, applicable in-vivo, and compatible with online analysis. As a chameleon in the analytical toolbox, solid phase microextraction (SPME) is one of the best tools available for studying biological systems in unconventional ways. In this review, SPME is spotlighted, and its capability for bioanalytical applications, including drug analysis, untargeted and targeted metabolomics, in-vivo and clinical studies, is scrutinized based on studies reported in the past five years. In addition, novel extractive phases and instrumental coupling strategies developed to serve bioanalytical research are discussed to give the perspective for state-of-the-art and future developments. The literature assessment showed that SPME could act as a critical tool to investigate in-vivo biological systems and provide information about the elusive portion of the metabolome. Moreover, recently introduced miniaturized SPME probes further improved the low-invasive nature of the sampling and enabled sampling even from a single cell. The coupling of SPME directly to mass spectrometry significantly reduced the total analytical workflow and became one of the promising tools suitable for fast diagnostic purposes and drug analysis. The numerous applications and advancements reported in bioanalysis using SPME show that it will continue to be an indispensable technique in the future.

Pharmaceuticals removal from hospital wastewater by fluidized aerobic bioreactor in combination with tubesettler.

Micropollutants, especially pharmaceutical compounds, are of significant concern owing to their ngL- 1 to µgL- 1 concentration, making them difficult for conventional treatment plants to remove from wastewater. Despite municipal wastewater treatment plant being a primary source of these compounds to be released into the wastewater, on comparison little attention has been given to hospital wastewater. The major focus of studies addressing pharmaceutical compounds is based on synthetic wastewater. This study addresses this research gap by treating wastewater to remove micropollutants (Fluvastatin, ketoprofen, paracetamol, ciprofloxacin, carbamazepine, sulfamethoxazole, and lorazepam) by employing a fluidized aerobic bioreactor. Tubesettler was attached to a fluidized-bed bioreactor to see if it could be used as a polishing unit rather than a secondary clarifier. The environmental risk from the effluent discharge into the environment was assessed regarding the hazard quotient. The paracetamol and ketoprofen were removed at an efficiency of 51% and 60%, respectively, followed by carbamazepine at 50%, ciprofloxacin at 40%, fluvastatin at 47%, sulfamethoxazole at 31%, and lorazepam at 20%. The influent posed moderate environmental risk with (Hazard Quotient) HQ > 0.5, while in effluent the risk was reduced with HQ value 0.4. For effluent from fluidized bed bioreactors (HQ 0.13) and tube setters (HQ 0.15). The associated tube settler was found suitable for polishing units with additional removal efficiencies of 15-43% for all the targeted pharmaceutical compounds. Further studies are required to explore disinfectants' effect on the reactor's biodegradation efficiency. Also, further modification and a hybrid version of the fluidized bed bioreactor can be used.

International Workers' Day: Consumption Patterns of Morphine, Codeine, and Methamphetamine in Urban and Rural Areas Based on Wastewater-Based Epidemiology.

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is a reliable means to estimate drug consumption in a specific population. By measuring the concentration of drug residues or metabolites in wastewater, the consumption behavior pattern of a specific population can be deduced. Using the WBE method, the present study, for the first time, continuously monitored the differences in the consumption of morphine (MOR), codeine (CODE), and methamphetamine (METH) in three wastewater-treatment plants in a city and two surrounding villages in Xinjiang, China during International Workers' Day and the following week. The wastewater samples were pretreated by solid-phase extraction and then analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Methamphetamine was not detected in rural areas and was detected only on International Workers' Day in urban areas. According to the estimation of per capita consumption, the per capita consumption of MOR, CODE, and METH in urban inhabitants was 12.04 to 23.39, 10.44 to 16.39, and 1.31 mg/day/1000 inhabitants. The per capita consumption of MOR and CODE in rural areas was 5.19 to 8.35 and 2.56 to 3.52 mg/day/1000 inhabitants. The consumption of MOR in urban and rural areas was significantly higher than that of CODE and METH. During International Workers' Day, workdays, and weekends, the consumption of MOR and CODE in urban areas is significantly higher than that in rural areas. Compared with those on weekends, the consumption of urban MOR and CODE increased more during International Workers' Day. The consumption of MOR in urban areas showed a weekend effect. The present study can provide information for subsequent research and government departments. Environ Toxicol Chem 2024;00:1-9. © 2024 SETAC.

Methods for degrading dicloxacillin in water using inorganic peroxides and their combination with UVC- experimental and theoretical aspects.

Antibiotics are currently recognized as environmental pollutants. In this work, the methods involved in the degradation of a ß-lactam antibiotic (i.e., DXC) by treatments based on inorganic peroxides and UVC (e.g., UVC alone, UV-C/H2O2, UVC/peroxymonosulfate, and UVC/peroxydisulfate) are presented. The methodology of computational calculations to obtain frontier orbitals and Fukui indices for DXC, and elucidate the reactive moieties on the target substance is also shown. Finally, the direct oxidation by peroxides and UV-C/H2O2 action to treat DXC in simulated pharmaceutical wastewater are depicted. The chromatographic and theoretical analyses allowed for determining the degrading performance of inorganic peroxides and UVC-based treatments toward the target pollutant in aqueous samples.•Treatments based on inorganic peroxides and UVC as useful methods for degrading the ß-lactam antibiotic dicloxacillin.•Persulfates and UV-C/H2O2 showed high degrading action on the target pharmaceutical.•Methodologies based on theoretical calculations for the identification of reactive moieties on the DXC susceptible to radical attacks are presented.