{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,18]],"date-time":"2026-09-18T21:02:50Z","timestamp":1789765370887,"version":"4.0.1"},"reference-count":37,"publisher":"Springer Science and Business Media LLC","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,29]],"date-time":"2024-08-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1724889600000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,29]],"date-time":"2024-08-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1724889600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["link.springer.com"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sci Rep"],"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>This study investigates the presence of new psychoactive substances (NPS) and their metabolites in two wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) situated in South Wales, UK (WWTP-1 and WWTP-2). Analysis was conducted for 35 NPS and metabolites, along with the inclusion of benzoylecgonine (main cocaine metabolite) and cannabis, the most detected illicit substances. Benzoylecgonine was identified as the predominant substance in both WWTPs. Epidemiological calculations revealed the average population consumption of cocaine to be 3.88\u00a0mg\/d\/1000 inhabitants around WWTP-1 and 1.97\u00a0mg\/d\/1000 inhabitants for WWTP-2. The removal efficiency of benzoylecgonine across both WWTPs was observed at an average of 73%. Subsequent qualitative analyses on randomly selected wastewater samples detected medicinal compounds including buprenorphine, methadone, and codeine in both WWTPs. An additional experiment employing enzymatic hydrolysis revealed the presence of morphine, an increased presence of codeine, and 11-Nor-9-Carboxy-THC (THC-COOH) post-hydrolysis. These findings underscore the significant presence of illicit substances and medicinal compounds in wastewater systems with the absence of NPS within the South Wales area, highlighting the necessity for enhanced monitoring and treatment strategies to address public health and environmental concerns.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-024-70378-7","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,29]],"date-time":"2024-08-29T14:02:57Z","timestamp":1724940177000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":7,"title":["Analysis of crude wastewater from two treatment plants in South Wales for 35 new psychoactive substances and cocaine, and cannabis"],"prefix":"10.1038","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Bethan","family":"Davies","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Richard","family":"Paul","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"David","family":"Osselton","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Timothy","family":"Woolley","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"70378_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1079","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2012.05.086","volume":"463-464","author":"R Pal","year":"2013","unstructured":"Pal, R., Megharaj, M., Kirkbride, K. P. & Naidu, R. Illicit drugs and the environment\u2014A review. Sci. Total Environ. 463\u2013464, 1079\u20131092 (2013).","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"70378_CR2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"146028","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2021.146028","volume":"776","author":"L Gent","year":"2021","unstructured":"Gent, L. & Paul, R. The detection of new psychoactive substances in wastewater. A comprehensive review of analytical approaches and global trends. Sci. Total Environ. 776, 146028. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2021.146028 (2021).","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"70378_CR3","first-page":"195","volume":"1","author":"S Castiglioni","year":"2021","unstructured":"Castiglioni, S. et al. New psychoactive substances in several European populations assessed by wastewater-based epidemiology. Water Res. 1, 195 (2021).","journal-title":"Water Res."},{"key":"70378_CR4","unstructured":"European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. European Drug Report\u202f: Trends and Developments 2022. 2022; Available from: www.emcdda.europa.eu"},{"key":"70378_CR5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"792","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2017.12.269","volume":"625","author":"E Archer","year":"2018","unstructured":"Archer, E., Castrignan\u00f2, E., Kasprzyk-Hordern, B. & Wolfaardt, G. M. Wastewater-based epidemiology and enantiomeric profiling for drugs of abuse in South African wastewaters. Sci. Total Environ. 625, 792\u2013800. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2017.12.269 (2018).","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"issue":"10","key":"70378_CR6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1992","DOI":"10.1038\/s41591-022-01940-x","volume":"28","author":"MB Diamond","year":"2022","unstructured":"Diamond, M. B. et al. Wastewater surveillance of pathogens can inform public health responses. Nat. Med. 28(10), 1992\u20131995. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1038\/s41591-022-01940-x (2022).","journal-title":"Nat. Med."},{"key":"70378_CR7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Zhao C, Zhang Y, Liang K, Li J. Environmental impact analysis of wastewater treatment process based on life cycle assessment. 2015.","DOI":"10.2991\/icemct-15.2015.341"},{"key":"70378_CR8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1186\/s12302-020-00304-x","author":"Y Deng","year":"2020","unstructured":"Deng, Y. et al. Occurrence and removal of illicit drugs in different wastewater treatment plants with different treatment techniques. Environ. Sci. Eur. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1186\/s12302-020-00304-x (2020).","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Eur."},{"issue":"33","key":"70378_CR9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"33816","DOI":"10.1007\/s11356-018-2464-6","volume":"26","author":"MK Yadav","year":"2019","unstructured":"Yadav, M. K. et al. Occurrence, removal and environmental risk of markers of five drugs of abuse in urban wastewater systems in South Australia. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. 26(33), 33816\u201333826 (2019).","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res."},{"key":"70378_CR10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/dta.3659","author":"B Davies","year":"2024","unstructured":"Davies, B., Paul, R., Osselton, D., Evers, R. & Woolley, T. Absence of new psychoactive substances in wastewater from South Wales, UK, revealed by optimised liquid chromatography-time-of-flight analysis. Drug Test. Anal. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/dta.3659 (2024).","journal-title":"Drug Test. Anal."},{"issue":"7\u20138","key":"70378_CR11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"861","DOI":"10.1002\/dta.1460","volume":"6","author":"ALN van Nuijs","year":"2014","unstructured":"van Nuijs, A. L. N. et al. Optimization, validation, and the application of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for the analysis of new drugs of abuse in wastewater. Drug Test. Anal. 6(7\u20138), 861\u2013867 (2014).","journal-title":"Drug Test. Anal."},{"key":"70378_CR12","unstructured":"Publications Office of the European Union. 2002\/657\/EC: Commission Decision of 12 August 2002 implementing Council Directive 96\/23\/EC concerning the performance of analytical methods and the interpretation of results (Text with EEA relevance) (notified under document number C(2002) 3044) [Internet]. 2002 [cited 2023 Jan 18]. Available from: https:\/\/op.europa.eu\/en\/publication-detail\/-\/publication\/ed928116-a955-4a84-b10a-cf7a82bad858\/language-en"},{"issue":"9","key":"70378_CR13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"812","DOI":"10.1002\/dta.1777","volume":"7","author":"J Kinyua","year":"2015","unstructured":"Kinyua, J. et al. Sewage-based epidemiology in monitoring the use of new psychoactive substances: Validation and application of an analytical method using LC-MS\/MS. Drug Test. Anal. 7(9), 812\u2013818 (2015).","journal-title":"Drug Test. Anal."},{"key":"70378_CR14","first-page":"855","volume":"10","author":"XT Shao","year":"2023","unstructured":"Shao, X. T. et al. Evaluation of eight psychoactive drugs used in Chinese cities by wastewater-based epidemiology. Sci. Total Environ. 10, 855 (2023).","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"issue":"633","key":"70378_CR15","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"249","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2018.03.175","volume":"15","author":"KS Foppe","year":"2018","unstructured":"Foppe, K. S., Hammond-Weinberger, D. R. & Subedi, B. Estimation of the consumption of illicit drugs during special events in two communities in Western Kentucky, USA using sewage epidemiology. Sci. Total Environ. 15(633), 249\u2013256 (2018).","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"issue":"1","key":"70378_CR16","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"659","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2013.12.054","volume":"487","author":"I Senta","year":"2014","unstructured":"Senta, I., Krizman, I., Ahel, M. & Terzic, S. Assessment of stability of drug biomarkers in municipal wastewater as a factor influencing the estimation of drug consumption using sewage epidemiology. Sci. Total Environ. 487(1), 659\u2013665 (2014).","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"issue":"573","key":"70378_CR17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1648","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2016.09.179","volume":"15","author":"E Gracia-Lor","year":"2016","unstructured":"Gracia-Lor, E., Zuccato, E. & Castiglioni, S. Refining correction factors for back-calculation of illicit drug use. Sci. Total Environ. 15(573), 1648\u20131659 (2016).","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"issue":"12","key":"70378_CR18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1620","DOI":"10.1016\/j.chroma.2011.01.060","volume":"1218","author":"DR Baker","year":"2011","unstructured":"Baker, D. R. & Kasprzyk-Hordern, B. Multi-residue analysis of drugs of abuse in wastewater and surface water by solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography-positive electrospray ionisation tandem mass spectrometry. J. Chromatogr. A. 1218(12), 1620\u20131631 (2011).","journal-title":"J. Chromatogr. A."},{"issue":"23","key":"70378_CR19","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"13668","DOI":"10.1021\/es504769c","volume":"48","author":"B Subedi","year":"2014","unstructured":"Subedi, B. & Kannan, K. Fate of artificial sweeteners in wastewater treatment plants in New York State, U.S.A.. Environ. Sci. Technol. 48(23), 13668\u201313674 (2014).","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Technol."},{"issue":"11","key":"70378_CR20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1053","DOI":"10.1016\/j.trac.2008.10.002","volume":"27","author":"C Postigo","year":"2008","unstructured":"Postigo, C., Lopez de Alda, M. J. & Barcel\u00f3, D. Analysis of drugs of abuse and their human metabolites in water by LC-MS2: A non-intrusive tool for drug abuse estimation at the community level. TrAC Trends Anal. Chem. 27(11), 1053\u20131069 (2008).","journal-title":"TrAC Trends Anal. Chem."},{"key":"70378_CR21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"131","DOI":"10.1016\/j.envint.2016.12.016","volume":"99","author":"E Gracia-Lor","year":"2017","unstructured":"Gracia-Lor, E. et al. Measuring biomarkers in wastewater as a new source of epidemiological information: Current state and future perspectives. Environ. Int. 99, 131\u2013150. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.envint.2016.12.016 (2017).","journal-title":"Environ. Int."},{"key":"70378_CR22","first-page":"341","volume":"1","author":"S Santana-Viera","year":"2023","unstructured":"Santana-Viera, S., Lara-Mart\u00edn, P. A. & Gonz\u00e1lez-Mazo, E. High resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) determination of drugs in wastewater and wastewater based epidemiology in Cadiz Bay (Spain). J. Environ. Manage. 1, 341 (2023).","journal-title":"J. Environ. Manage."},{"key":"70378_CR23","first-page":"217","volume":"1","author":"AJ Pandopulos","year":"2020","unstructured":"Pandopulos, A. J. et al. Towards an efficient method for the extraction and analysis of cannabinoids in wastewater. Talanta. 1, 217 (2020).","journal-title":"Talanta."},{"key":"70378_CR24","first-page":"11","volume":"23","author":"A Di Trana","year":"2020","unstructured":"Di Trana, A., Carlier, J., Berretta, P., Zaami, S. & Ricci, G. Consequences of COVID-19 lockdown on the misuse and marketing of addictive substances and new psychoactive substances. Front. Psychiatry. 23, 11 (2020).","journal-title":"Front. Psychiatry."},{"key":"70378_CR25","first-page":"335","volume":"15","author":"TI Lawrence","year":"2023","unstructured":"Lawrence, T. I., Sims, N., Kasprzyk-Hordern, B., Jonnalagadda, S. B. & Martincigh, B. S. Wastewater profiling of illicit drugs, an estimation of community consumption: A case study of eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, South Africa. Environ. Pollut. 15, 335 (2023).","journal-title":"Environ. Pollut."},{"key":"70378_CR26","first-page":"240","volume":"15","author":"J Campo","year":"2023","unstructured":"Campo, J., Vitale, D., Sadutto, D., Vera-Herrera, L. & Pic\u00f3, Y. Estimation of legal and illegal drugs consumption in Valencia City (Spain): 10 years of monitoring. Water Res. 15, 240 (2023).","journal-title":"Water Res."},{"issue":"1","key":"70378_CR27","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ejfs.2011.04.002","volume":"1","author":"FP Smith","year":"2011","unstructured":"Smith, F. P. & McGrath, K. R. Cocaine surface contamination and the medico-legal implications of its transfer. Egypt J. Forensic Sci. 1(1), 1\u20134 (2011).","journal-title":"Egypt J. Forensic Sci."},{"key":"70378_CR28","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"377","DOI":"10.1016\/j.chemosphere.2018.01.158","volume":"198","author":"A Cosenza","year":"2018","unstructured":"Cosenza, A. et al. Occurrence of illicit drugs in two wastewater treatment plants in the South of Italy. Chemosphere. 198, 377\u2013385. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.chemosphere.2018.01.158 (2018).","journal-title":"Chemosphere."},{"key":"70378_CR29","unstructured":"Nursing Notes. 100 Most Commonly Prescribed Medications in UK Hospitals. 2017."},{"issue":"609","key":"70378_CR30","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1172","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2017.07.231","volume":"31","author":"J Gao","year":"2017","unstructured":"Gao, J. et al. Evaluation of in-sewer transformation of selected illicit drugs and pharmaceutical biomarkers. Sci. Total Environ. 31(609), 1172\u20131181 (2017).","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"issue":"1","key":"70378_CR31","first-page":"1","volume":"9","author":"L Bijlsma","year":"2019","unstructured":"Bijlsma, L., Celma, A., L\u00f3pez, F. J. & Hern\u00e1ndez, F. Monitoring new psychoactive substances use through wastewater analysis: Current situation, challenges and limitations. Curr. Opin. Environ. Sci. Health. 9(1), 1\u201312 (2019).","journal-title":"Curr. Opin. Environ. Sci. Health."},{"issue":"3","key":"70378_CR32","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"883","DOI":"10.1007\/s00216-014-8118-8","volume":"407","author":"KB Scheidweiler","year":"2015","unstructured":"Scheidweiler, K. B., Jarvis, M. J. Y. & Huestis, M. A. Nontargeted SWATH acquisition for identifying 47 synthetic cannabinoid metabolites in human urine by liquid chromatography-high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry. Anal. Bioanal. Chem. 407(3), 883\u2013897 (2015).","journal-title":"Anal. Bioanal. Chem."},{"key":"70378_CR33","first-page":"347","volume":"1","author":"B Moslah","year":"2023","unstructured":"Moslah, B. et al. Sewage analysis as an alternative tool for assessing drug of abuse and new psychoactive substances in Tunisia. Forensic Sci. Int. 1, 347 (2023).","journal-title":"Forensic Sci. Int."},{"key":"70378_CR34","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/dta.3682","author":"CS Gomes","year":"2024","unstructured":"Gomes, C. S. et al. Wastewater surveillance to assess cocaine and methylenedioxymethamphetamine use trends during a major music festival in Brazil. Drug Test. Anal. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/dta.3682 (2024).","journal-title":"Drug Test. Anal."},{"issue":"5","key":"70378_CR35","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"625","DOI":"10.2166\/wh.2023.318","volume":"21","author":"C Sweetapple","year":"2023","unstructured":"Sweetapple, C. et al. Dynamic population normalisation in wastewater-based epidemiology for improved understanding of the SARS-CoV-2 prevalence: A multi-site study. J. Water Health. 21(5), 625\u2013642 (2023).","journal-title":"J. Water Health."},{"key":"70378_CR36","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s11356-020-09818-6","author":"S Zarei","year":"2020","unstructured":"Zarei, S. et al. A global systematic review and meta-analysis on illicit drug consumption rate through wastewater-based epidemiology. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s11356-020-09818-6 (2020).","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res."},{"issue":"11","key":"70378_CR37","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"4627","DOI":"10.1007\/s10653-021-00954-7","volume":"43","author":"H Yu","year":"2021","unstructured":"Yu, H. et al. Estimating dynamic population served by wastewater treatment plants using location-based services data. Environ. Geochem. Health. 43(11), 4627\u20134635 (2021).","journal-title":"Environ. Geochem. Health."}],"container-title":["Scientific Reports"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41598-024-70378-7.pdf","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41598-024-70378-7","content-type":"text\/html","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41598-024-70378-7.pdf","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,29]],"date-time":"2024-08-29T14:09:00Z","timestamp":1724940540000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41598-024-70378-7"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,29]]},"references-count":37,"journal-issue":{"issue":"1","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,12]]}},"alternative-id":["70378"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1038\/s41598-024-70378-7","relation":{},"ISSN":["2045-2322"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2045-2322","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,29]]},"assertion":[{"value":"26 January 2024","order":1,"name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"value":"16 August 2024","order":2,"name":"accepted","label":"Accepted","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"value":"29 August 2024","order":3,"name":"first_online","label":"First Online","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"value":"The authors declare no competing interests.","order":1,"name":"Ethics","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Competing interests"}}],"article-number":"20129"}}