Edinburgh Napier University

  Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are agents able to exert perturbation toward the endocrine system via a broad array of signalling pathways. Some EDCs are released into the environment as a result of antropogenic activities. Analytical surveillance plays a critical role in investigating the prevalence of such chemicals in environmental samples. A study was carried out in a lagoon in Southern Italy, a water basin relates to the sea through a mouth channel, making this water body a "dynamic environment". The screening of fourteen EDCs in surface waters and sediments, includes a fast and cost‐effective sample preparation, based on a solid‐liquid (sediments) and liquid‐liquid (surface waters) extraction and a chromatographic analysis by liquid chromatography tandem UV and fluorescence detection. Only four chemicals out the fourteen investigated EDCs were detected in both matrices with a frequency higher than 60%. The average concentrations of the single EDC were higher in sediments (730 ‐ 155.000 ng Kg‐1 dw) than in surface waters (132 – 28.000 ng L‐1). Limited to the assayed EDCs, the ecosystem has a low risk regarding to the conservation of biodiversity of the animal species living thereby, since the total estrogenic activity does not exceed 1 ng L− 1.