Biological advanced oxidation of the pharmaceuticals clofibric acid (CA), carbamazepine (CBZP), atenolol (ATL) and propranolol (PPL) is reported for the first time. Extracellular oxidizing species were produced through a quinone redox cycling mechanism catalyzed by an intracellular quinone reductase and any of the ligninolytic enzymes of Trametes versicolor after addition of the lignin-derived quinone 2,6-dimethoxy-1,4-benzoquinone (DBQ) and Fe(3+)-oxalate in the medium. Time-course experiments with approximately 10mg L(-1) of initial pharmaceutical concentration resulted in percent degradations above 80% after 6h of incubation. Oxidation of pharmaceuticals was only observed under DBQ redox cycling conditions. A similar degradation pattern was observed when CBZP was added at the environmentally relevant concentration of 50 microg L(-1). Depletion of DBQ due to the attack of oxidizing agents was assumed to be the main limiting factor of pharmaceutical degradation. The main degradation products, that resulted to be pharmaceutical hydroxylated derivatives, were structurally elucidated. The detected 4- and 7-hydroxycarbamazepine intermediates of CBZP degradation were not reported to date. Total disappearance of intermediates was observed in all the experiments at the end of the incubation period.
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