ABSTRACT
Sewage pollution is a principal factor of decreasing water quality, although it has not been considered a real impact in Amazonia that is still considered a pristine environment around the world. Thus, this study aimed to assess the levels of sewage contamination in sediments from three streams crossing Manausâ¯-â¯a Brazilian city of 2,403,796 inhabitants in the heart of the Amazon rain forest. Cholesterol, cholestanol, brassicasterol, ergosterol, stigmasterol, ß-sitosterol, campesterol, stigmastanol, coprostanol, and epicoprostanol levels were determined by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The fecal indicator, coprostanol, was found in high concentrations (509-12â¯830â¯ngâ¯g-1) and high relative proportions (21-54%) in all samples collected in the Mindu stream that crosses many heavily populated districts of the city, and in the Quarenta stream that crosses the Industrial District of Manaus. The sediments of the Tarumã-Açu stream also presented coprostanol; however, concentrations (Subject(s)
Environmental Monitoring/methods
, Rivers/chemistry
, Sterols/analysis
, Water Pollutants/analysis
, Water Pollution/analysis
, Water Quality
, Biomarkers/analysis
, Brazil
, Cholestadienols/analysis
, Cholestanol/analysis
, Cholestanols/analysis
, Cholesterol/analogs & derivatives
, Cholesterol/analysis
, Chromatography, Liquid
, Drug Contamination
, Feces
, Geologic Sediments/chemistry
, Phytosterols/analysis
, Sewage/analysis
, Sitosterols/analysis
, Tandem Mass Spectrometry
