Cytotoxicity and Genotoxicity of Chloroacetamides, a Relatively Newly Identified Group of Nitrogenous Disinfection Byproducts in Drinking Water

Abstract:

We quantified the concentrations of three chloroacetamides (CAcAms) in the final water of five drinking water treatment plants that use either chlorination or chloramination for disinfection and also we evaluated their toxicity in normal rat kidney cells using four in vitro toxicity assays, including cell viability test, single cell gel electrophoresis assay, apoptosis assay, and cell cycle analysis. An overall toxicity calculation suggests that minochloroacetamide (MCAcAm) represents a significantly higher cytotoxic and genotoxic risk than dichloroacetamide (DCAcAm) and trichloroacetamide (TCAcAm), albeit MCAcAm concentration was relatively lower than them. Moreover, the toxicity associated with CAcAms was higher in chloraminated waters than that in chlorinated waters due to the higher concentration of CAcAms in chloraminated waters.