TY - JOUR
T1 - Microalgae-based remediation of pharmaceutical contaminants
T2 - Emerging strategies and technological synergies
AU - Narayanan, Ishvarya
AU - Rajamanickam, Ricky
AU - Singh, Rishu Kumari
AU - Singh, Pardeep
AU - Prabhu, Ashish A.
AU - Pandey, Ashutosh
AU - Pradhan, Nirakar
AU - Nancharaiah, Y.V.
AU - Kumar, Vikram
AU - Selvasembian, Rangabhashiyam
AU - Mal, Joyabrata
N1 - Dr. Rangabhashiyam Selvasembian acknowledges the financial support provided by the SRM University–AP under the grant: SRMAP/URG/ SEED/ 2023–2024/021 and ASEAN– India Collaborative R&D scheme under ASEAN–India S&T Development Fund –CRD/2024/000712 and Dr. Joyabrata Mal thanks the Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences (BRNS), Department of Atomic Energy, Govt. of India under the grant: 56/14/02/2022–BRNS/10224.
PY - 2025/11
Y1 - 2025/11
N2 - In recent years, the pharmaceutical sector has undergone significant expansion, leading to increased use and unregulated discharge of pharmaceutical compounds (PhCs) into aquatic environments. This has resulted in adverse impacts such as antibiotic resistance, endocrine disruption, and hormonal imbalances among others. Effective treatment of PhCs-laden wastewater is crucial before environmental discharge. Phycoremediation, using algae, offers a promising approach for treating these emerging contaminants. This review systematically analyzes current phycoremediation trends, highlighting key mechanisms such as biotransformation, biodegradation, and photodegradation by various algal species. Integrating phycoremediation with technologies like high-rate algal ponds, photobioreactors, constructed wetlands, up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket reactors, and advanced oxidation processes have demonstrated enhanced PhC removal, with efficiencies ranging from 40–100% depending on the PhC and algal species. Algal–bacterial consortia and integration with advanced oxidation processes show particular promise for improved removal. Furthermore, this review explores the potential of artificial intelligence and machine learning for optimizing phycoremediation strategies and discusses future research directions for maximizing PhC removal and resource recovery from pharmaceutical wastewater.
AB - In recent years, the pharmaceutical sector has undergone significant expansion, leading to increased use and unregulated discharge of pharmaceutical compounds (PhCs) into aquatic environments. This has resulted in adverse impacts such as antibiotic resistance, endocrine disruption, and hormonal imbalances among others. Effective treatment of PhCs-laden wastewater is crucial before environmental discharge. Phycoremediation, using algae, offers a promising approach for treating these emerging contaminants. This review systematically analyzes current phycoremediation trends, highlighting key mechanisms such as biotransformation, biodegradation, and photodegradation by various algal species. Integrating phycoremediation with technologies like high-rate algal ponds, photobioreactors, constructed wetlands, up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket reactors, and advanced oxidation processes have demonstrated enhanced PhC removal, with efficiencies ranging from 40–100% depending on the PhC and algal species. Algal–bacterial consortia and integration with advanced oxidation processes show particular promise for improved removal. Furthermore, this review explores the potential of artificial intelligence and machine learning for optimizing phycoremediation strategies and discusses future research directions for maximizing PhC removal and resource recovery from pharmaceutical wastewater.
KW - Bioremediation
KW - Microalgae
KW - Phycoremediation
KW - Pharmaceutical wastewater treatment
KW - Emerging contaminants
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=105019761530&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s42452-025-07226-4
DO - 10.1007/s42452-025-07226-4
M3 - Journal article
SN - 2523-3971
VL - 7
JO - Discover Applied Sciences
JF - Discover Applied Sciences
IS - 11
M1 - 1288
ER -
