Understanding ecotoxicological drivers and responses of freshwater green algae, Raphidocelis subcapitata, to cationic polyquaternium polymers.

Autor: Hansen AMB; Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark., Brill JL; Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability, The Procter & Gamble Company, Mason, OH, USA., Connors KA; Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability, The Procter & Gamble Company, Mason, OH, USA. Electronic address: connors.ka@pg.com., Belanger SE; Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability, The Procter & Gamble Company, Mason, OH, USA., Baun A; Department of Environmental and Resource Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark., Sanderson H; Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Environmental research [Environ Res] 2023 Aug 15; Vol. 231 (Pt 3), pp. 116282. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 May 29.
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.116282
Abstrakt: Cationic polymer (CP) ecotoxicity is important to understand and investigate as they are widely used in industrial and consumer applications and have shown toxic effects in some aquatic organisms. CPs are identified as "polymers of concern" and are to be prioritized in upcoming regulatory reviews, (e.g., REACH). Algae have generally been found to be the most sensitive trophic level to CP. This study aimed at elucidating the magnitude of cationic polyquaternium toxicity towards algae and to understand key toxicological drivers. A suite of polyquaterniums with varying charge density (charged nitrogen moieties) and molecular weight were selected. Highly charged polyquaternium-6 and -16 were toxic towards the freshwater green microalgae Raphidocelis subcapitata with ErC50-values ranging between 0.12 and 0.41 mg/L. Lower charge density polyquaternium-10 materials had much lower toxicity with ErC50 > 200 mg/L, suggesting that charge density is an important driver of algal toxicity. These levels of toxicity were in line with historic CP data in literature. Algal agglomeration was observed in all tests but was not linked with impacts on algal growth rate. However, agglomeration can pose challenges in the technical conduct of tests and can impair interpretation of results. The toxicity mitigation potential of humic acid was also explored. The addition of 2-20 mg/L humic acid completely mitigated PQ6 and PQ16 toxicity at concentrations higher than clean water ErC50-values. CP toxicity mitigation has also been observed in fish and invertebrate tests, suggesting that CP mitigation should be accounted for in all trophic levels within an environmental safety framework.
Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Kristin Connors, Anna Magdalene Brun Hansen, Scott Belanger, and Hans Sanderson reports financial support was provided by European Chemical Industry Council. Kristin Connors, Jessica Brill, and Scott Belanger reports a relationship with The Procter & Gamble Company that includes: employment and equity or stocks.
(Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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