Environmental fate of antiepileptic drugs and their metabolites: Biodegradation, complexation, and photodegradation
Authors: Borch Thomas , Hadar Yitzhak , Polubesova Tamara 
Published: January 2022

Many pharmaceutical compounds are active at very low doses, and a portion of them regularly enters municipal sewage systems and wastewater-treatment plants following use, where they often do not fully degrade. Two such compounds, CBZ and LTG, have been detected in wastewater effluents, surface waters, drinking water, and irrigation water, where they pose a risk to the environment and the food supply. These compounds are expected to interact with organic matter in the environment, but little is known about the effect of such interactions on their environmental fate and transport. The original objectives of our research, as defined in the approved proposal, were to: Determine the rates, mechanisms and products of photodegradation of LTG, CBZ and selected metabolites in waters exposed to near UV light, and the influence of DOM type and binding processes on photodegradation. Determine the potential and pathways for biodegradation of LTG, CBZ and selected metabolites using a white rot fungus (Pleurotusostreatus) and ADP, and reveal the effect of DOM complexation on these processes. Reveal the major mechanisms of binding of LTG, CBZ and selected metabolites to DOM and soil in the presence of DOM, and evaluate the effect of this binding on their photodegradation and/or biodegradation. We determined that LTG undergoes relatively slow photodegradation when exposed to UV light, and that pH affects each of LTG’s ability to absorb UV light, the efficiency of the resulting reaction, and the identities of LTG’sphotoproducts (t½ = 230 to 500 h during summer at latitude 40 °N). We observed that LTG’sphotodegradation is enhanced in the presence of DOM, and hypothesized that LTG undergoes direct reactions with DOM components through nucleophilic substitution reactions. In combination, these data suggest that LTG’s fate and transport in surface waters are controlled by environmental conditions that vary with time and location, potentially affecting the environment and irrigation waters. We determined that P. ostreatusgrows faster in a rich liquid medium (glucose peptone) than on a natural lignocellulosic substrate (cotton stalks) under SSF conditions, but that the overall CBZ removal rate was similar in both media. Different and more varied transformation products formed in the solid state culture, and we hypothesized that CBZ degradation would proceed further when P. ostreatusand the ᵉⁿᶻʸᵐᵃᵗⁱᶜ ᵖʳᵒᶠⁱˡᵉ ʷᵉʳᵉ ᵗᵘⁿᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ ˡⁱᵍⁿⁱⁿ ᵈᵉᵍʳᵃᵈᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿ. ᵂᵉ ᵒᵇˢᵉʳᵛᵉᵈ ¹⁴C⁻Cᴼ2 ʳᵉˡᵉᵃˢᵉ ʷʰᵉⁿ ¹⁴C⁻ᶜᵃʳᵇᵒⁿʸˡ⁻ labeled CBZ was used as the substrate in the solid state culture (17.4% of the initial radioactivity after 63 days of incubation), but could not conclude that mineralization had occurred. In comparison, we determined that LTG does not degrade in agricultural soils irrigated with treated wastewater, but that P. ostreatusremoves up to 70% of LTG in a glucose peptone medium. We detected various metabolites, including N-oxides and glycosides, but are still working to determine the degradation pathway. In combination, these data suggest that P. ostreatuscould be an innovative and effective tool for CBZ and LTG remediation in the environment and in wastewater used for irrigation. In batch experiments, we determined that the sorption of LTG, CBZ and selected metabolites to agricultural soils was governed mainly by SOM levels. In lysimeter experiments, we also observed LTG and CBZ accumulation in top soil layers enriched with organic matter. However, we detected CBZ and one of its metabolites in rain-fed wheat previously irrigated with treated wastewater, suggesting that their sorption was reversible, and indicating the potential for plant uptake and leaching. Finally, we used macroscale analyses (including adsorption/desorption trials and resin-based separations) with molecular- level characterization by FT-ICR MS to demonstrate the adsorptive fractionation of DOM from composted biosolids by mineral soil. This suggests that changes in soil and organic matter types will influence the extent of LTG and CBZ sorption to agricultural soils, as well as the potential for plant uptake and leaching.