Environmental fingerprinting of recent strategies for detection of macrolides and fluoroquinolones in environmental and food matrices based on green analytical chemistry indexes

Abstract

Antibiotic resistance is a growing issue around the world, with an increasing number of diseases becoming more challenging to treat due to the decreasing effectiveness of antibiotics. One approach to controlling this problem is through adequate usage and disposal of antibiotics. Monitoring their presence in the main transmission pathways for humans is essential for assessing the success of preventive strategies.

The analytical methods used to monitor antibiotic levels are often associated with high reagent and energy consumption, as well as the use of hazardous materials that are harmful to the operator and to the environment. It is essential to employ more sustainable methods in line with the principles of Green Analytical Chemistry. To achieve this, the integration of green assessment tools will play an important role in helping researchers to choose more environmentally friendly techniques.

Hence, the aim of this work is to assess the environmental impact of analytical procedures focused on the detection of macrolides and fluoroquinolones by integrating sustainability green metrics tools, namely the National Environmental Methods Index Label (NEMI), the Analytical Eco-Scale, the Modified Green Analytical Process Index (MoGAPI) and the Analytical GREEnness metric (AGREE). For sample preparation procedures, the specific tool Analytical GREEnness metric for sample preparation (AGREEprep) was applied. According to these metrics, sensor-based methods and microextraction techniques for sample treatment are the less environmentally burdensome approaches, whereas chromatographic methods and conventional solid-phase extraction received the worst scores, indicating a heavier environmental burden.