Mustafa Ali Mohd. And
Anwar Norazit
Department of Pharmacology,
Faculty of Medicine
University of Malaya
Estrone and b-estradiol are naturally secreted in the urine and
feces of mammals. The detection of these compounds in the aquatic environment
is alarming as these compounds have been classified as endocrine disrupting
chemicals. Endocrine disrupting chemicals are a wide group of natural and
synthetic chemicals that can interfere with the endocrine system. The ability
of endocrine disrupting chemicals to interfere with the hormone system has
potentially implicated them in a decrease in fertility, reduced intellectual
capacity, and behavioral problems. This method allows for the quantification
of estrone and b-estradiol, two of
the most estrogenic compounds in environmental water samples. The samples
were extracted by solid phase extraction using C18 cartridges.
Diazepam was used as the internal standard and was added prior to extraction.
The sample was then derivatised using bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide
(BSTFA) and analyzed by selected ion monitoring mode using a quadrapole detector
in a Shimadzu QP-2010 gas chromatograph mass spectrometer (GCMS) system. The recovery of the target compounds
ranged from 102.8-115.95% with a coefficient of variation (CV) of 2.28-12.46%.
The methodological limit of detection is 0.1 ng/l.
In this
study, a simple and sensitive method was developed to analyze trace levels
of estrone and b-estradiol
in small quantities of environmental water samples using solid phase extraction
and gas chromatograph mass spectrometer. A total of 17 waste water samples
were collected from various undisclosed locations, near livestock industries
around Melaka, Malaysia. Both estrone and b-estradiol
were detected in the waste water samples. Nine of the seventeen samples were
positive for either estrone, b-estradiol,
or both are present together.