Phytoremediation potential of aquatic plants to tetracycline in Eastern Siberia

Abstract

The current status of the environment pollution with tetracycline antibiotics is considered. It is demonstrated that big-scale and often unauthorized use of tetracyclines in veterinary practice leads to their accumulation in foods of animal origin and in natural environments, resulting in endocrine disorders, chronic toxicity, and development of antibiotic resistance. The existing treatment facilities as a rule do not ensure the removal of antibiotics from wastewater, so these transit through the treatment system, directly enter water bodies (rivers, lakes), and pose a threat for water users located downstream. To block this path of antibiotics spread, advanced treatment systems can be used, such as phyto-engineering treatment facilities with growing of aquatic plants with high phytoremediation potential for antibiotics. It has been found that aquatic plants are capable of eliminating tetracycline from water medium. It has been proposed to consider phytoremediation as one of reasonably-priced solutions for removing antibiotics from water medium.