ARS | Publication request: Fate of Sulfamethazine in Surface Water Microcosms and Bioaccumulation in Sediment-dwelling Invertebrates

Submitted to: American Chemical Society National Meeting
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: May 12, 2008
Publication Date: August 17, 2008
Citation: Henderson, K.L., Moorman, T.B., Coats, J.R. 2008. Fate of Sulfamethazine in Surface Water Microcosms and Bioaccumulation in Sediment-dwelling Invertebrates. American Chemical Society National Meeting. 75:97.

Technical Abstract: The antibiotic sulfamethazine can be transported from manured fields to surface water bodies. We investigated the degradation and fate of sulfamethazine in small pond water microcosms using 14C-phenyl-sulfamethazine, and found a 2.7-d half-life in pond water and 4.2-d half-life when added to the water with a dilute manure solution that simulated runoff from manured land. Sulfamethazine concentrations in sediment accounted for 10 to 15% of the applied antibiotic within 14 days, and then declined thereafter. Sulfamethazine is transformed mainly into sediment-bound residue (40 to 60%) and smaller amounts of photoproducts. Biodegradation, as indicated by metabolite formation and 14CO2 evolution, was less significant than photodegradation. Manure input increased sorption and bound residue formation. The bioavailability of sulfamethazine in pond water microcosms was evaluated using Lumbriculus variegatus. Bioconcentration factors (BCFs) were calculated following exposure to sulfamethazine in water or water-sediment systems. A significant inverse relationship between exposure concentration and BCF was observed, with log BCF of 2.17 at 0.05 mg/l during aquatic exposure. Log BCF following sediment exposure was 1.89.