Abstract
This chapter aims to visualize in the first instance the approach that is handled in terms of the use and types of water in the pharmaceutical industry and the importance of quality control of the same in the field of the pharmaceutical industry, as well as the issue of how water for pharmaceutical use can become a pollutant specifically in water niches and how this can cause an impact on clinical, environmental, and food health. Other aspects that the authors comment on are some strategies to decrease the impact of water contamination for pharmaceutical use. In the group of contaminants, the chapter is focused on the presence of antibiotics being relevant in the global warming issue on antimicrobial resistance.
TopWater Quality
Water quality indexes (WQI) have been proposed and used for several decades, which have the purpose of simplifying in a numerical expression the positive or negative characteristics of any water source. water quality is the set of chemical, physical and biological characteristics, which make it suitable for different uses such as: human consumption, uses in agriculture and livestock, use in industry, use for power generation, use for navigation, use for recreation or for the maintenance of ecosystem functions (Carla et al., 2018; Raḿrez et al., 1997).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Bacteria: Microscopic, single-celled organisms. They are among the oldest known life forms on the planet.
Biofilms: Structured and complex community of bacteria and other microorganisms that adhere to a surface.
Emerging Contaminants: Any previously unknown or unrecognized contaminant whose presence in the environment is not necessarily new, but which raises concern about the possible consequences of its presence.
Antimicrobial Resistance: Natural process by which microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, parasites, or other pathogens) develop resistance to the drugs used to treat them.
Water: A substance whose molecule is composed of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. The term water generally refers to the substance in its liquid state, although it can be found in its solid form, called ice, and in its gaseous form, called vapor.
Reverse Osmosis: Reverse osmosis is a water purification process that uses a partially permeable membrane to separate ions, unwanted molecules, and larger particles from drinking water.
Fecal Coliforms: Facultatively anaerobic, rod-shaped, gram-negative, non-sporulating bacteria. Coliform bacteria generally originate in the intestines of warm-blooded animals.
Antibiotic: A chemical substance produced by a living being or synthetically derived, which kills or prevents the growth of certain kinds of sensitive microorganisms.