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In the current scenario of water scarcity1 and raising awareness about the harm caused by contaminants of emerging concern2, it is fundamental to develop new and sustainable water treatment technologies that are capable of degrading these anthropogenic substances to avoid their bio accumulation and persistence in the environment3. Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) have shown a great capacity to degrade organic micropollutants (OMPs), but even technologies that attract a large amount of scientific attention in the past decades, such as photocatalysis, are still far away from real large-scale applications due to their high energy demands4, 5. Nevertheless, the fast development of ultra-violet light- emitting diodes (UV-LEDs) has a potential to open new horizons for water treatment technologies. The point-source character of UV-LEDs and other unique features, like controlled periodic illumination (CPI), allow more flexible photoreactor designs6. There is a lack of data evaluating the impact of different reactor designs and other variables related to the matrix composition on the degradation rates of OMPs during photocatalysis6, as well as the impact of novel technologies on total organic carbon (TOC) abatement and effluent’s toxicity. The EU Watch List of Contaminants of Emerging Concern serves as a guideline for scientists, highlighting substances which are ubiquitously found in European surface waters so that their fate and degradation pathways – as well as degradation possibilities – can be investigated further.

U nutritivnom smislu, meso divljači bogato je esencijalnim aminokiselinama, bjelančevinama i mineralima, a siromašno zasićenim masnim kiselinama te se zbog prirodnog (ekološkog) uzgoja smatra vrlo prihvatljivom namirnicom u prehrani ljudi. Unatoč nutritivnim kvalitetama i prirodnom uzgoju, meso divljači izloženo je kontaminacijama različitim kontaminantima podrijetlom iz okoliša te raznim nepravilnostima tijekom tehnološkog procesa prerade mesa. Obzirom na kontaminante porijeklom iz okoliša, najučestalije su one izazvane teškim metalima poput olova, kadmija, žive i arsena, ali i raznih drugih organskih i anorganskih kontaminanata. Navedeni metali mogu prouzročiti neurotoksične, nefrotoksične, i kancerogene učinke na zdravlje potrošača te mogu utjecati na rad srčano-žilnog sustava i na građu i strukturu kostiju.