title: Detection and evaluation of endocrine-disruption activity in water samples from Portuguese rivers.
abstract: Water samples (n = 183) from Portuguese rivers were tested for the presence of endocrine disruptors using the recombinant yeast assay (RYA) combined with chemical identification of compounds having endocrine-disruption properties by liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. Ten selected locations were sampled monthly for a period of 20 months, from April 2001 to December 2002. More than 90% of samples showed either no detectable or low levels of estrogenicity (<0.1 ng/L of estradiol equivalents). The remaining samples (17 in total, 9.3%) showed estrogenicity values ranging from 0.1 to 1.7 ng/L of estradiol equivalents; only two samples showed values greater than 1 ng/L of estradiol equivalents. Most highly estrogenic samples (13 of 17 samples) originated in five sampling sites clustered in two zones near Porto and Lisbon. Chemical analysis detected alkylphenolic compounds (octyl- and nonylphenol plus nonylphenol ethoxylates) in all samples, albeit at concentrations less than 1 microg/L for each compound in 80% of samples. Total analyte concentration exceeded 10 microg/L in only 10 samples, with all but one of those originating from only two sampling sites. In these two locations, a good correlation was observed between the concentrations of octylphenol, nonylphenol, and to a lesser extent, bisphenol A in the samples and their estrogenicity values as calculated by RYA. We conclude that estrogenic activity can be explained by alkylphenol contamination in only these sites; for the remainder, we propose that pesticides and urban waste may be the main factors responsible for estrogenic contamination.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, IBMB-CSIC, 08034 Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Laia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Quirós
authors.forename: Raquel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Céspedes
authors.forename: Sílvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lacorte
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Viana
authors.forename: Demetrio
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Raldúa
authors.forename: Damià
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Barceló
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Piña
mesh_terms: D001681:Biological Assay; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D002947:Cities; D004703:Endocrine System / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D004958:Estradiol / Q000032:analysis*; D005843:Geography; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D010575:Pesticides / Q000633:toxicity; D010636:Phenols / Q000032:analysis; D011174:Portugal; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D012722:Sewage / Q000009:adverse effects; D013997:Time Factors; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity*; D015003:Yeasts / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D010575:Pesticides; D010636:Phenols; D012722:Sewage; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C474055:octylphenol; D004958:Estradiol; C025256:nonylphenol