Human activities predominantly release perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and other fluorinated chemicals, which are highly persistent, leading to long-term accumulation in organisms and posing significant health risks. Therefore, it is essential to study the long-term impacts of PFOA on terrestrial ecosystems using sentinel organisms such as earthworms. This research investigated the toxicity of PFOA on earthworms (Eisenia fetida) across three different soil types. An acute toxicity assay was conducted to assess the effects of PFOA on survival, growth, cellulase activity, lysosomal membrane stability, and avoidance behaviour. Concurrently, a chronic toxicity assay examined the impact on reproduction, specifically focusing on cocoon production and juvenile emergence. For the 14-day acute toxicity study, LC50 values were found to be 823.9 mg/kg, 894.9 mg/kg, and 672.2 mg/kg in alkaline, neutral, and OECD soils, respectively. Although PFOA showed lower toxicity in neutral soils, it still caused significant sublethal effects in all soil types. Chronic exposure to a concentration of 100 mg/kg significantly affected reproduction in all soils tested. Overall, the findings suggested that earthworms were effective sentinel organisms for evaluating the toxic potential of PFOA, with reproductive effects serving as particularly sensitive indicators of PFOA contamination. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2025.

Biopolymers infused with bimetallic nanoparticles exhibit a wide range of functionalities necessary for efficiently eliminating diverse water contaminants. However, the protracted production process requires further exploration. As such, present study seeks to optimize microwave-assisted technique for the facile synthesis of cross-linked chitosan (CTS) supported bimetallic-oxide nanoparticles, specifically zinc oxide (ZnO) and iron-oxide (Fe3O4), denoted as CTS-TTP/Zn-Fe. The primary objective is to investigate the efficacy of these beads in the removal of Paracetamol (PCM) from single and complex water matrices while also assessing their antibacterial properties. Characterization includes chemical composition, surface structures, thermal stability, and magnetic properties. The experimental results demonstrated that CTS-TPP/Zn-Fe beads achieved a remarkable PCM removal efficiency of ~99 % (qm = 4.98 mg g−1), with a Zn:Fe mole ratio of 1:1. The experimental data showed good applicability with Freundlich isotherm and chemisorption-supported rate models (R2 > 0.9). To evaluate the long-term viability and practicality of these beads, three crucial field applicability tests were conducted. These encompassed competition studies with other pharmaceuticals, desorption investigations for repeated use, and efficiency evaluations in an ionic solution. Collectively, this research provides a comprehensive understanding, spanning from material design to practical applications, with potential relevance for large-scale wastewater treatment when coupled with appropriate flux control measures. © 2024 Elsevier B.V.

We compare, the prevalence, fate, and sources of Bisphenol A both globally and in India. India has the highest concentration of BPA and Bisphenol S(BPS) in general, with vegetables, particularly corn, beans, strings, and raw or canned vegetables, being the largest contributors. Among all the matrices, bisphenols (BPs) are found in the highest concentration in food, followed by surface water, wastewater, and indoor dust. BPA, BPS, and BPF are the most commonly reported analogues in India, with BPA being the most dominant category used worldwide. The highest concentration of BPs is observed in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana that are three major agricultural states of India however, there is still a research gap regarding the dietary exposure to BPs on an individual level. Environmentally detected BPA occurs in a range of below detection to 10636 ng. L−1, with significant geographic variations. Interestingly, the order of abundance in India was maximum for BPS, which is contrary to the global average, where BPA is observed as most abundant. BPS is found to be the most common BPs analogue in surface water worldwide, with limited removal efficiency by both naturally remediation and conventional treatment methods. Similar patterns were observed in the US-India and Japan-Korea regions in terms of their source-sink-prevalence-fate dynamics. The probability of exceeding safe concentrations of BPs is higher in India and Korea, suggesting that these countries are more vulnerable to high prevalence concentrations and the subsequent public health hazards. © 2024 The Authors

This paper aims to emphasize the occurrence of various emerging contaminant (EC) mixtures in natural ecosystems and highlights the primary concern arising from the unregulated release into soil and water, along with their impacts on human health. Emerging contaminant mixtures, including pharmaceuticals, personal care products, dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls, pesticides, antibiotics, biocides, surfactants, phthalates, enteric viruses, and microplastics (MPs), are considered toxic contaminants with grave implications. MPs play a crucial role in transporting pollutants to aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems as they interact with the various components of the soil and water environments. This review summarizes that major emerging contaminants (ECs), like trimethoprim, diclofenac, sulfamethoxazole, and 17α-Ethinylestradiol, pose serious threats to public health and contribute to antimicrobial resistance. In addressing human health concerns and remediation techniques, this review critically evaluates conventional methods for removing ECs from complex matrices. The diverse physiochemical properties of surrounding environments facilitate the partitioning of ECs into sediments and other organic phases, resulting in carcinogenic, teratogenic, and estrogenic effects through active catalytic interactions and mechanisms mediated by aryl hydrocarbon receptors. The proactive toxicity of ECs mixture complexation and, in part, the yet-to-be-identified environmental mixtures of ECs represent a blind spot in current literature, necessitating conceptual frameworks for assessing the toxicity and risks with individual components and mixtures. Lastly, this review concludes with an in-depth exploration of future scopes, knowledge gaps, and challenges, emphasizing the need for a concerted effort in managing ECs and other organic pollutants. © 2024

Heavy metals (HMs) in indoor dust are among the most toxic micropollutants and have attracted mainly the attention of researchers in the last three decades concerning the environmental and human health perspectives. Hence, a thorough literature-based bibliometric analysis was inevitably needed to identify the research trend for the prevalence of HMs in indoor environments and their toxicological aspects. Accordingly, exploring publications on the Web of Science Core Collection database to identify the articles published on HM pollution in indoor dust environments revealed several peculiar findings. The review article indicates that the majority of studies conducted in this field are monitoring-based, utilizing “HMs (n = 79),” “contaminations (n = 49),” “lead (n = 49),” and “health” as primary keywords in the published articles. Among the countries, China emerged as the most active investigator in this area, followed by the USA, Middle East, Turkey, Korea, and India. Additionally, China has established collaborations with ~150 and >90 countries, respectively, solidifying its leading position in publications. Studies on HM pollution in indoor dust have evolved from initial exposure analyses in the 1990s to encompass bioavailability, bioaccessibility, exposure, risk assessment, speciation, and source apportionment assessments. Metal pollution in residential and commercial areas (schools/offices) primarily originates from in-house sources and vehicle emissions, while industrial areas, driven by anthropogenic activities (e-waste recycling/mining), face metal pollution from different sources. The analysis underscores that studies predominantly focus on risk assessment of significant metals, their bioaccessibility/bioavailability, and source apportionments. This study’s exploration of HMs in indoor dust provides explicit content and trends, offering valuable insights for researchers delving into this field. It not only suggests remedial measures but also contributes to the development of forecasting models. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. 2023.