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Potential health impact and genotoxicity analysis of drinking source water from Liuxihe Reservoir (P.R. China)

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Abstract

Water from the Liuxihe Reservoir (a source of drinking water for Guangzhou City, P. R. China) was analyzed for semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and the results were used for a potential health impact assessment and genotoxicity test with the microalgae Euglena gracilis. The SVOCs were tested using USEPA Method 525.2, and the health risk assessment was conducted at a screening level using the hazard quotient (HQ) approach. Alkaline single-cell gel electrophoresis (comet assay) was used to evaluate DNA damage and determine the genotoxicity of the source water. The concentrations of the SVOCs in Liuxihe Reservoir were very low and phthalic acid esters were the main SVOCs present. The mean HQ values of pollutants were all less than one, indicating no risk. However, the lifetime carcinogenic risks (LCRs) were found to be close to the threshold of 1.00E−5. The results show that the water in the Liuxihe Reservoir might pose a potential carcinogenic risk to local residents. The highly concentrated extracts of the water samples could induce DNA damage in the microalgal cells and a dose–effect relationship was identified. These results showed that Liuxihe Reservoir water, as a source of drinking water, could pose a potential LCR to local consumers.

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Acknowledgments

The work was supported by the Key Project of Unite Program of NSFC (National Natural Science Foundation of China) and Guangdong Province (No. U0733007).

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Xianlin Campus, 163 Xianlin Avenue, Nanjing, 210023, China

    Weili Wang, Mei Li, Yibin Cui, Xiangyu Gao & Xin Qian

  2. School of Life Science, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, China

    Kun Chen

Authors
  1. Weili Wang
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  2. Mei Li
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  3. Yibin Cui
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  4. Xiangyu Gao
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  5. Kun Chen
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  6. Xin Qian
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Correspondence to Mei Li or Xin Qian.

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Wang, W., Li, M., Cui, Y. et al. Potential health impact and genotoxicity analysis of drinking source water from Liuxihe Reservoir (P.R. China). Ecotoxicology 23, 647–656 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-014-1181-2

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