Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

The Occurrence of Micropollutants in the Aquatic Environment and Technologies for Their Removal

This review summarizes the growing problem of micropollutants in water, including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and industrial chemicals, and evaluates advanced treatment methods to remove them. The research is important for human health because conventional water treatment plants cannot effectively filter out these contaminants, meaning people may be regularly exposed through tap water.

2025 Processes 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Pharmaceuticals in Water: Risks to Aquatic Life and Remediation Strategies

This review examines how pharmaceutical drugs in waterways threaten aquatic life and potentially human health. The biggest concern is the rise of antibiotic resistance from drugs entering water through household and agricultural waste. While not specifically about microplastics, the topic is connected because microplastics can adsorb and transport pharmaceutical residues through water systems.

2023 Hydrobiology 99 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic–Pharmaceuticals Interaction in Water Systems

This review examined the interactions between microplastics and pharmaceutical compounds in aquatic environments, exploring how microplastics act as vectors that concentrate, transport, and potentially enhance the bioavailability and toxicity of drug residues in water.

2023 Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 18 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Micro(nano)plastics as a vector of pharmaceuticals in aquatic ecosystem: Historical review and future trends

This systematic review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics in water can absorb and carry pharmaceutical drugs, creating a combined pollution threat. When medications attach to tiny plastic particles in rivers and oceans, they may become more harmful to aquatic life and potentially to humans who consume contaminated seafood or water. The research traces how this emerging double-threat has grown since 2018 and identifies key knowledge gaps.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials Advances 32 citations
Article Tier 2

Which\nMicropollutants in Water Environments Deserve\nMore Attention Globally?

This review analyzed which organic micropollutants in water environments deserve the most global attention based on their toxicity, occurrence frequency, and persistence. Microplastics are among the contaminants considered, alongside pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and industrial chemicals that routinely escape conventional water treatment and accumulate in aquatic ecosystems.

2021 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Which\nMicropollutants in Water Environments Deserve\nMore Attention Globally?

This review analyzed which organic micropollutants in water environments deserve the most global attention based on their toxicity, occurrence frequency, and persistence. Microplastics are among the contaminants considered, alongside pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and industrial chemicals that routinely escape conventional water treatment and accumulate in aquatic ecosystems.

2021 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Pharmaceuticals and Microplastics in Aquatic Environments: A Comprehensive Review of Pathways and Distribution, Toxicological and Ecological Effects

This review examines how pharmaceuticals and microplastics travel through the environment and accumulate in aquatic food chains, with drug residues found at measurable levels in surface waters and microplastics reaching densities of up to a million particles per cubic meter in some water systems. When aquatic organisms absorb these combined pollutants, the contaminants can biomagnify up the food chain to humans, affecting growth, reproduction, and immune function.

2025 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Sustainable treatment systems for removal of pharmaceutical residues and other priority persistent substances

This review evaluates sustainable wastewater treatment technologies for removing pharmaceutical residues and other micropollutants before treated water is discharged to the environment. Advanced treatment methods are also applicable to improving microplastic removal from wastewater.

2019 Water Science & Technology 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution Focused on Sources, Distribution, Contaminant Interactions, Analytical Methods, and Wastewater Removal Strategies: A Review

This review examines microplastic pollution across all environmental compartments, covering sources, distribution, contaminant interactions, analytical methods, and wastewater removal strategies. Microplastics act as vectors for pesticides, pharmaceuticals, heavy metals, PCBs, and PAHs, and the review discusses both the analytical challenges of detection and available treatment options.

2022 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 74 citations
Article Tier 2

Pharmaceuticals and micro(nano)plastics in the environment: Sorption and analytical challenges

This review examines how pharmaceutical residues and micro- and nanoplastics interact in water environments, finding that microplastics can adsorb medications and alter their environmental behavior. Factors like plastic type, surface area, and biological film growth all influence these interactions, but very few studies have been conducted under real-world conditions. The authors highlight persistent analytical challenges and the need for field-based research to understand actual risks.

2024 Trends in Environmental Analytical Chemistry 5 citations
Article Tier 2

The occurence of pharmaceuticals and other micropollutants in wastewater treatment plant in the aspect of interaction with microplastics

Researchers analysed the occurrence of antibiotics, virucidal, and fungicidal pharmaceuticals in raw and treated sewage at a wastewater treatment plant in southern Poland, examining their removal efficiency and potential interactions with microplastics present in the effluent. The study found that pharmaceutical micropollutants persisted through treatment to varying degrees, raising concerns about combined contamination pathways when microplastics act as co-vectors for these compounds.

2024 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Environmental Fate of Emerging Organic Micro-Contaminants

This review covers the sources, fate, and toxicity of pharmaceuticals and other organic micropollutants in natural and built environments. It examines how these contaminants, which often co-occur with microplastics, persist in water systems and affect aquatic organisms.

2019
Article Tier 2

Pharmaceuticals and Microplastics in Aquatic Environments: A comprehensive Review of Pathways and Distribution, Toxicological and Ecological

This review examines how pharmaceuticals and microplastics travel through aquatic environments via wastewater, agricultural runoff, and air, and how they affect fish and other aquatic life. Both pollutants build up in the food chain through a process called biomagnification, potentially reaching humans who eat seafood. The authors call for better monitoring and treatment methods to reduce these emerging threats to water quality and public health.

2025 Preprints.org 6 citations
Article Tier 2

How to decrease pharmaceuticals in the environment? A review

This review examines strategies for reducing pharmaceutical pollution in the environment, which is relevant to microplastic research because pharmaceuticals often co-occur with plastic contaminants in waterways. The authors ranked approaches from upstream solutions like greener drug design and better prescription practices to downstream technologies like advanced water treatment. The study concludes that preventing pharmaceutical pollution at its source is more effective and sustainable than relying solely on end-of-pipe treatment technologies.

2021 Environmental Chemistry Letters 156 citations
Article Tier 2

Determination of the pharmaceuticals–nano/microplastics in aquatic systems by analytical and instrumental methods

Researchers reviewed analytical and instrumental methods for detecting pharmaceutical compounds associated with nano- and microplastic particles in aquatic systems. They examined how pharmaceuticals bind to plastic particles and the combined environmental risks these mixtures pose to water sources and marine life. The study identifies gaps in current detection capabilities and calls for improved methods to assess the combined impact of these co-occurring pollutants.

2022 Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 46 citations
Article Tier 2

Pharmaceutical Pollution in Aquatic Environments: A Concise Review of Environmental Impacts and Bioremediation Systems

This review examines how pharmaceutical drugs are polluting waterways worldwide because conventional wastewater treatment cannot effectively remove them. The authors focus on bioremediation approaches, especially using fungi, as a more sustainable and eco-friendly way to break down these drug residues. While not directly about microplastics, the research is relevant because microplastics can carry pharmaceutical compounds in water, and better water treatment would address both contaminants.

2022 Frontiers in Microbiology 315 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as vectors of pharmaceuticals in aquatic organisms – An overview of their environmental implications

Researchers reviewed how microplastics act as "vectors" for pharmaceutical contaminants in aquatic environments, absorbing drugs onto their surfaces and then releasing them inside organisms after ingestion — potentially amplifying the toxicity of pharmaceuticals throughout the food web.

2021 Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering 100 citations
Article Tier 2

Issues of Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs in Aquatic Environments: A Review Study

This paper is not primarily about microplastics. It reviews the occurrence and environmental fate of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs like ibuprofen and diclofenac) in aquatic environments, focusing on their incomplete removal by wastewater treatment plants and effects on aquatic organisms. While pharmaceutical pollutants and microplastics are both emerging contaminants in water, this study addresses drug contamination rather than microplastic pollution.

2023 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Sustainable Model Study: Collection and Disposal of Waste Medications with Micropollutant Properties in the Ecosystem within the Scope of Zero Waste

This study proposes sustainable approaches for managing waste pharmaceuticals, which are classified as micropollutants that escape conventional wastewater treatment and contaminate drinking water and soil. While focused on drug residues rather than microplastics, the paper addresses the broader challenge of micropollutant removal from water systems.

2019 Erzincan Üniversitesi Fen Bilimleri Enstitüsü Dergisi 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Emerging Contaminants in Drinking Water

This review examined emerging contaminants in drinking water, including microplastics, pharmaceutical residues, and disinfection byproducts, assessing their occurrence, treatment removal efficiencies, and implications for human health.

2024 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Treatment of Microplastics from Pharmaceutical Industrial Wastewater

Pharmaceutical manufacturing generates wastewater containing microplastics from plastic equipment, packaging, and processing materials, a source of contamination that surged during the COVID-19 pandemic as drug production ramped up. This review examines the nature of microplastic contamination in pharmaceutical wastewater and evaluates treatment techniques for removing these particles before discharge. Addressing this overlooked industrial source is important for reducing microplastic loads entering water systems from healthcare and pharmaceutical infrastructure.

2025 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Emerging Contaminants in Water: Detection, Treatment, and Regulation

This review covers emerging contaminants in water — including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and industrial chemicals — discussing detection methods, treatment technologies, and regulatory frameworks. The authors highlight major gaps in current water quality standards and the need for updated regulations to address these newer pollutants.

2021 Water 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Specific types of wastewater pollution in Ostrava and possibilities of decontamination through wastewater treatment plants

Researchers examined micropollutant contamination in wastewater in Ostrava, Czech Republic, finding that conventional wastewater treatment plants inadequately remove pharmaceutically active compounds and drug metabolites, posing risks to receiving waterways and highlighting the need for advanced treatment technologies.

2023 E3S Web of Conferences 1 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Systematic Review of Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs): Distribution, Risks, and Implications for Water Quality and Health

This systematic review summarizes research on contaminants of emerging concern, including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and industrial chemicals found in water sources. The findings highlight that these pollutants pose real risks to both ecosystems and human health, and that current water treatment methods may not fully remove them.

2023 Water 67 citations