EU surveys insights: analytical tools, future directions, and the essential requirement for reference materials in wastewater monitoring of SARS-CoV-2, antimicrobial resistance and beyond.

Background: Wastewater surveillance (WWS) acts as a vigilant sentinel system for communities, analysing sewage to protect public health by detecting outbreaks and monitoring trends in pathogens and contaminants. To achieve a thorough comprehension of present and upcoming practices and to identify challenges and opportunities for standardisation and improvement in WWS methodologies, two EU surveys were conducted targeting over 750 WWS laboratories across Europe and other regions. The first survey explored a diverse range of activities currently undertaken or planned by laboratories.

New RT-PCR Assay for the Detection of Current and Future SARS-CoV-2 Variants.

Multiple lineages of SARS-CoV-2 have been identified featuring distinct sets of genetic changes that confer to the virus higher transmissibility and ability to evade existing immunity. The continuous evolution of SARS-CoV-2 may pose challenges for current treatment options and diagnostic tools. In this study, we have first evaluated the performance of the 14 WHO-recommended real-time reverse transcription (RT)-PCR assays currently in use for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 and found that only one assay has reduced performance against Omicron.

Wide-scope target screening characterization of legacy and emerging contaminants in the Danube River Basin by liquid and gas chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry.

A state-of-the-art wide-scope target screening of 2,362 chemicals and their transformation products (TPs) was performed in samples collected within the Joint Danube Survey 4 (JDS4) performed in 2019. The analysed contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) included three major categories: plant protection products (PPPs), industrial chemicals and pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). In total, 586 CECs were detected in the samples including 158 PPPs, 71 industrial chemicals, 348 PPCPs, and 9 other chemicals.

Lagrangian profiles of riverine autotrophy, organic matter transformation, and micropollutants at extreme drought.

On their way from inland to the ocean, flowing water bodies, their constituents and their biotic communities are exposed to complex transport and transformation processes. However, detailed process knowledge as revealed by Lagrangian measurements adjusted to travel time is rare in large rivers, in particular at hydrological extremes. To fill this gap, we investigated autotrophic processes, heterotrophic carbon utilization, and micropollutant concentrations applying a Lagrangian sampling design in a 600 km section of the River Elbe (Germany) at historically low discharge.

Prevalence and circulation patterns of SARS-CoV-2 variants in European sewage mirror clinical data of 54 European cities.

For community-level monitoring, the European Commission under the EU Sewage Sentinel System recommends wastewater-based SARS-CoV-2 surveillance. Tracking SARS-CoV-2 variants in a community is pivotal for appropriate public health response. Genome sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater samples for tracking variants is challenging, often resulting in low coverage genome sequences, thereby impeding the detection of the SARS-CoV-2 mutations.

Genome Sequencing of Wastewater Confirms the Arrival of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant at Frankfurt Airport but Limited Spread in the City of Frankfurt, Germany, in November 2021.

Wastewater-based severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) surveillance of Frankfurt Airport by genome sequencing was used to detect SARS-CoV-2 variants entering the region. In November 2021, we found all characteristic mutations of Omicron in wastewater originating from Frankfurt Airport before the first confirmed clinical report from an arriving passenger on 26 November 2021.

Chemical mixtures and fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis of natural microbial community in the Tiber river.

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) regulates freshwater and coastal water quality assessment in Europe. Chemical and ecological water quality status is based on measurements of chemical pollutants in water and biota together with other indicators such as temperature, nutrients, species compositions (phytoplankton, microalgae, benthos and fish) and hydromorphological conditions. However, in the current strategy a link between the chemical and the ecological status is missing.

Analysis of emerging organic contaminants in water, fish and suspended particulate matter (SPM) in the Joint Danube Survey using solid-phase extraction followed by UHPLC-MS-MS and GC-MS analysis.

In the third Joint Danube Survey (JDS3), emerging organic contaminants were analysed in the dissolved water phase of samples from the Danube River and its major tributaries. Analyses were performed using solid-phase extraction (SPE) followed by ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS-MS) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The polar organic compounds analysed by UHPLC-MS-MS were 1H-benzotriazole, methylbenzotriazoles, carbamazepine, 10,11-dihydro-10,11-dihydroxy-carbamazepine, diclofenac, sulfamethox-azole, 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid), MCPA (2-methyl-4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid), metolachlor, cybutryne (irgarol), terbutryn, DEET (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide), and several perfluoroalkyl acids (C-C; C=perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)) and perfluorooctansulfonic acid (PFOS).

Comparing measured and modelled PFOS concentrations in a UK freshwater catchment and estimating emission rates.

The lifecycle, sources and fate of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) continue to generate scientific and political interest, particularly since PFOS was listed by the Stockholm Convention and largely restricted in Europe. It continues to be detected in aquatic environments, with only limited studies into the on-going sources. This paper explores PFOS emissions discharged by the general population into a small catchment comprising two rivers in the UK.

Looking for protein expression signatures in European eel peripheral blood mononuclear cells after in vivo exposure to perfluorooctane sulfonate and a real world field study.

The decline of European eel population can be attributed to many factors such as pollution by xenobiotics present in domestic and industrial effluents. Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) is a ubiquitous compound of a particular concern in Europe. PFOS can reach high concentrations in tissues of organisms and many toxic effects have been reported in fish.

EU-wide monitoring survey on emerging polar organic contaminants in wastewater treatment plant effluents.

In the year 2010, effluents from 90 European wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) were analyzed for 156 polar organic chemical contaminants. The analyses were complemented by effect-based monitoring approaches aiming at estrogenicity and dioxin-like toxicity analyzed by in vitro reporter gene bioassays, and yeast and diatom culture acute toxicity optical bioassays. Analyses of organic substances were performed by solid-phase extraction (SPE) or liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) followed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) or gas chromatography high-resolution mass spectrometry (GC-HRMS).

Analysis of polar organic contaminants in surface water of the northern Adriatic Sea by solid-phase extraction followed by ultrahigh-pressure liquid chromatography-QTRAP® MS using a hybrid triple-quadrupole linear ion trap instrument.

Water-soluble polar organic contaminants are discharged by rivers, cities, and ships into the oceans. Little is known on the fate, pollution effects, and thresholds of toxic chemical mixtures in the marine environment. A new trace analytical method was developed for the multi-compound analysis of polar organic chemical contaminants in marine waters.

Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of ritodrine hydrochloride administered orally and intramuscularly to female healthy volunteers.

Ritodrine hydrochloride ((R,S)-4-hydroxy-alpha-[1-[2-((4-hydroxyphenyl)ethyl]amino)ethyl]benzenemethanol, CAS 26652-09-5) is a direct-acting sympathomimetic agent with a predominant beta-adrenergic activity and a selective action on beta2-receptors. A clinical trial was carried out to investigate the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and safety of ritodrine hydrochloride administered at the doses of 10, 20 and 30 mg p.o.

Pharmacokinetics of isoxsuprine hydrochloride administered orally and intramuscularly to female healthy volunteers.

Isoxsuprine (1-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-2-(1-methyl-2-phenoxyethylamino)-1-propanol, CAS 395-28-8) is a peripheral vasodilator that also stimulates beta-adrenergic receptors. It causes a direct relaxation of vascular and uterine smooth muscles and produces positive inotropic and chronotropic effects. It is widely used to arrest premature labour and miscarriage.

Column-switching system with restricted access pre-column packing for an integrated sample cleanup and liquid chromatographic-mass spectrometric analysis of alkylphenolic compounds and steroid sex hormones in sediment.

A novel methodology based on column switching LC-MS, using restricted access material (RAM), for an integrated sample clean-up and analysis of endocrine disrupting compounds in sediment samples is described. The use of RAM precolumns, that combines size exclusion and reversed-phase retention mechanisms, enables fast on-line clean-up of sediment extracts and sensitive determination of alkylphenolic compounds, bisphenol A and steroid sex hormones at low ppb level (LODs=0.5-5 ng/g).