Environmental risk assessment of wastewaters from printed circuit board production: A multibiomarker approach using human cells.
Since the production of printed circuit boards (PCBs) generates wastewater contaminated with heavy metals and organic matter, PCB factories represent potential pollution sites. The wastewater toxicologically tested in this study contained several metals and the most abundant were copper and iron. At two exposure times tested (4 and 24 h) PCB wastewater (PCBW) proved to be cytotoxic (decreased cell viability) and genotoxic (increased comet assay tail intensity and tail moment) to human blood peripheral lymphocytes in vitro, and the oxidative stress parameter (malondialdehyde concentration) was also found to be higher. After application of combined treatment by waste base, ozone and waste sludge methods, concentrations of metals in purified PCBW were below the upper permitted levels and all tested toxicological parameters did not differ compared to the negative control. Taken together, similar methods could be implemented in PCB factories before discharging potentially toxic wastewater into the environment because purified PCBW does not represent a threat from the aspect of cytotoxicity and genotoxicity.
Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Mutagenesis Unit, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia.
Marko
M
Gerić
Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Mutagenesis Unit, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia.
Goran
G
Gajski
ORESCANIN Ltd., 10000, Zagreb, Croatia.
Višnja
V
Oreščanin
University of Zagreb, Faculty of Pharmacy and Biochemistry, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia.
Ana-Marija
AM
Domijan
ORESCANIN Ltd., 10000, Zagreb, Croatia.
Robert
R
Kollar
Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Mutagenesis Unit, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia. Electronic address: vgaraj@imi.hr.
Vera
V
Garaj-Vrhovac
D000328:Adult; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D020552:Comet Assay; D003300:Copper / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity*; D055615:Electrical Equipment and Supplies; D006801:Humans; D007220:Industrial Waste / Q000032:analysis*; D007501:Iron / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity*; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000097:blood; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods; D012722:Sewage / Q000032:analysis*; D062065:Wastewater / Q000633:toxicity; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
D003300:Copper; D007220:Industrial Waste; D007501:Iron; D008315:Malondialdehyde; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012722:Sewage; D062065:Wastewater; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
Cytotoxicity; Genotoxicity; Oxidative stress; Printed circuit boards; Wastewater; Wastewater management