In Vivo Toxicological Assessment of Corn Irrigated With Textile Wastewater: Comparative Evaluation of Biological and Hydrocyclone Enhanced Treatments

ABSTRACT

Reusing textile wastewater represents a promising solution for meeting agricultural needs while preserving the environment amid increasing water scarcity. However, wastewater contains various pollutants and chemicals, thus effective treatment is needed to mitigate their impact on water quality and public health. In this study, we evaluated the effectiveness of combined biological treatment and hydrocyclone separation in improving textile effluent quality by analyzing their physicochemical properties and assessing the potential health risks using an in vivo food‐chain toxicological model. Corn irrigated with biologically treated wastewater (BTW) or with BTW subjected to hydrocyclone treatment (BTW+HT) was administered to Swiss mice for 30 days. Our findings revealed that BTW+HT resulted in significant reductions of 60% in color, 40% in total suspended solids, and 40% in chromium concentration. Moreover, mice fed corn irrigated with BTW+HT showed a significant reduction of approximately 39% in DNA damage, particularly in brain cells. Biochemical analysis revealed lower aspartate transaminase and alanine transaminase levels along with a restoration of superoxide dismutase activity, whereas malondialdehyde and NF‐κB levels revealed no significant changes. In addition, histological analysis showed no alterations in tissue structure. These findings demonstrate that the combination of hydrocyclone and biological treatment improves effluent physicochemical quality, with a concomitant reduction in the observed toxicological effects, supporting the potential of treated textile wastewater as an alternative resource able to tackle water shortage. Further studies are required to validate the long‐term safety and large‐scale applicability of this combined treatment strategy for agricultural reuse of textile wastewater.