In spring of 2019, researchers set out to investigate what chemicals could be found in the waters of Bangladesh.
In spring of 2019, researchers set out to investigate what chemicals could be found in the waters of Bangladesh.
The scientists — from the University at Buffalo and icddr,b, a leading global health research institute in Bangladesh — tested a lake, a canal and a river in Dhaka, Bangladesh’s capital and the nation’s largest city. The team also sampled water from ditches, ponds and drinking wells in a rural area known as Matlab.
In the lab, an analysis revealed that the waters held a cocktail of pharmaceuticals and other compounds, including antibiotics, antifungals, anticonvulsants, anesthetics, antihypertensive drugs, pesticides, flame retardants and more.
Not all of these chemicals were found at every location, and sometimes amounts detected were low.
Read more at University at Buffalo
Image: To study pharmaceuticals in water, UB scientists used the system pictured to isolate chemical compounds from water samples. (Credit: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki)
