title: Estrogenic activity and cytotoxicity of six anticancer drugs detected in water systems.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to investigate the in vitro estrogenic and the cytotoxic activity of six cytostatics (5-fluorouracil, capecitabine, cisplatin, doxorubicin, etoposide, and imatinib) belonging to the five classes of Anatomical Therapeutic Classification (ATC) detected in wastewater systems. The estrogenic activity was assessed by YES-assay on Saccharomyces cerevisiae-RMY326 and E-screen on MCF-7 cells. The cytotoxic activity was assessed by MTT Cell Proliferation Assay on the MCF-7 and the MDA-MB-231 cells. The results of estrogenic activity, detected by E-screen and expressed as EC50, showed a high potential of imatinib (10(-7) μM) followed by cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil. Capecitabine was poorly estrogenic while etoposide and doxorubicin EC50 values were not possible to determine. Cytotoxicity was found at concentrations far from those detected in effluents. The potential endocrine activity of the most active drugs could be associated with human and wildlife risk when considering their occurrence in the environment.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Ambientali, Biologiche e Farmaceutiche, Seconda Università di Napoli, Via Vivaldi 43, I-81100 Caserta, Italy.
authors.forename: Alfredo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Parrella
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Ambientali, Biologiche e Farmaceutiche, Seconda Università di Napoli, Via Vivaldi 43, I-81100 Caserta, Italy.
authors.forename: Margherita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lavorgna
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Ambientali, Biologiche e Farmaceutiche, Seconda Università di Napoli, Via Vivaldi 43, I-81100 Caserta, Italy.
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Criscuolo
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Ambientali, Biologiche e Farmaceutiche, Seconda Università di Napoli, Via Vivaldi 43, I-81100 Caserta, Italy.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Ambientali, Biologiche e Farmaceutiche, Seconda Università di Napoli, Via Vivaldi 43, I-81100 Caserta, Italy. Electronic address: marina.isidori@unina2.it.
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Isidori
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000633:toxicity*; D001681:Biological Assay; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000633:toxicity*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D061986:MCF-7 Cells; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Anticancer drugs; Cytostatics; Cytotoxicity; Endocrine activity; Environmental pollution