Metabolism of Ibuprofen by Phragmites australis: Uptake and Phytodegradation

Abstract

This study explores ibuprofen (IBP) uptake and transformation in the wetland plant species Phragmites australis and the underlying mechanisms. We grew P. australis in perlite under greenhouse conditions and treated plants with 60 μg/L of IBP. Roots and rhizomes (RR), stems and leaves (SL), and liquid samples were collected during 21 days of exposure. Results show that P. australis can take up, translocate, and degrade IBP. IBP was completely removed from the liquid medium after 21 days with a half-life of 2.1 days. IBP accumulated in RR and was partly translocated to SL. Meanwhile, four intermediates were detected in the plant tissues: hydroxy-IBP, 1,2-dihydroxy-IBP, carboxy-IBP and glucopyranosyloxy-hydroxy-IBP. Cytochrome P450 monooxygenase was involved in the production of the two hydroxy intermediates. We hypothesize that transformation of IBP was first catalyzed by P450, and then by glycosyltransferase, followed by further storage or metabolism in vacuoles or cell walls. No significant phytotoxicity was observed based on relative growth of plants and stress enzyme activities. In conclusion, we demonstrated for the first time that P. australis degrades IBP from water and is therefore a suitable species for application in constructed wetlands to clean wastewater effluents containing IBP and possibly also other micropollutants.

Formation of biologically active benzodiazepine metabolites in Arabidopsis thaliana cell cultures and vegetable plants under hydroponic conditions

“…In addition, it may be postulated that rapid phase III metabolism may have limited the accumulation of such conjugates in the plant tissues, making the conjugates transient metabolites. In previous studies, glycosyltransferase was observed to catalyze the detoxification of ibuprofen in Phragmite australis during a 21 d exposure (He et al, 2017). Further, the formation of a glucose conjugate has been considered to be a major detoxification pathway for several environmental contaminants (e.g., Ando et al, 2015;Fu et al, 2017aFu et al, , 2017b.…”

“…Several studies have focused on the uptake and accumulation of pharmaceuticals in agricultural plants as a result of TWW irrigation (e.g., Wu et al, 2013Wu et al, , 2014Goldstein et al, 2014;Carter et al, 2014). These studies have demonstrated the capacity of higher plants to take up these compounds; however, until recently, relatively little consideration has been given to their metabolism in plants (Fu et al, 2017a(Fu et al, , 2017bHe et al, 2017;Huber et al, 2009Huber et al, , 2012Wu et al, 2015). Recent studies have shown that higher plants can metabolize xenobiotics similarly to humans with phase I modification reactions followed by phase II conjugation reactions using detoxification enzymes that function as a 'green liver' (Sandermann, 1992).…”

A review on the removal of conditioning chemicals from cooling tower water in constructed wetlands

“…The plants in CWs fulfill various purposes. Plants can directly remove contaminants by actively taking them up in their biomass, accumulating them and enzymatically breaking them down (He et al, 2017;Hurtado et al, 2016;Malchi, Maor, Tadmor, Shenker, & Chefetz, 2014). Plants also indirectly influence the removal of components by excreting exudates, nutrients and oxygen for microorganisms in the rhizosphere, thus stimulating microbial degradation (Garcia et al, 2010;Zhai, Piwpuan, Arias, Headley, & Brix, 2013).…”

“…The exact removal mechanism for specific contaminants in CWs was not further elucidated. However, several groups recently have worked on identifying specific CW removal mechanisms for mixtures of different contaminants ( Avila, Reyes, Bayona, & Garc ıa, 2013;He, Sutton, Rijnaarts, & Langenhoff, 2018;He et al, 2017;Matamoros, Garc ıa, & Bayona, 2008;Petrie et al, 2018;Zhang, Gersberg, Ng, & Tan, 2014), which allows a better prediction of the fate of CC from CTBD in the CW. In addition to the removal mechanisms, important parameters that influence CW functioning will be discussed, and challenges for the implementation of CWs for the removal of CC from CTBD will be identified.…”

Insights into the uptake, metabolization, and translocation of four non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in cress (Lepidium sativum) by HPLC‐MS2

“…As an example, reclaimed wastewater counts for 50% of the total irrigation water used in Israel and also within the European Union, countries like Spain or Italy use substantial amounts of reclaimed water . For this reason the uptake, translocation and metabolization of xenobiotics by plants is the topic of a series of research projects reflected in a number of corresponding publications .…”