Abstract
210Po and 210Pb have been measured systematically in whole animals, muscle and hepatopancreas of crustaceans and of molluscan cephalopods representative of a pelagic and benthic food chain. The same nuclides were also measured in liver, pyloric caecum, stomach contents and muscle of tuna. The concentration factors from sea water to whole animals were approximately constant along both food chains, being of the order of 104 for 210Po and 102 for 210Pb. The highest concentration factors were found in shrimp of the genus Sergestes. In muscle, the concentration factors were an order of magnitude less; in the hepatopancreas, they were an order of magnitude higher, reaching 106 in shrimp of the genus Sergestes. Such concentrations imply alpha-radiation doses of the order of 10 rem per year and more in this organ, which contains about 50 to 90% of the 210Po in the whole animal in the 11 species analyzed. A detailed study of the intracellular behaviour of 210Po in the hepatopancreas is clearly indicated. 210Po can be used as a sensitive natural tracer in biological systems. Thus, feeding Meganyctiphanes norvegica in the laboratory on food low in 210Po led to an approximate value of about 61/2 days for the biological half-life of 210Po in the hepatopancreas of this euphausiid. Furthermore, the data on 210Po and 210Pb in the cephalopod hepatopancreas allowed the time of conservation of frozen squid which had been bought at the market to be estimated.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature Cited
Barrington, E.J.W.: The alimentary canal and digestion. In: The physiology of fishes, Vol. I. pp 109–161. Ed. by M.E. Brown. New York: Academic Press 1957
Beasley, T.M., R.J. Eagle and T.A. Jokela: Polonium-210, lead-210 and stable lead in marine organisms. Q. Summ. Rep. Hlth Saf. Lab., N.Y. (Fallout Progm.) HASL-273, 2–36 (1973)
Bidder, A.M.: The digestive mechanism of the European squids Loligo vulgaris, L. forbesi, Allotheutis media and A. subulata. Q. Jl microsc. Sci. 91, 1–44 (1950)
—: Feeding and digestion in cephalopods. In: Physiology of Mollusca, pp 97–124. Ed. by K. M. Wilbur and C.M. Yonge. New York: Academic Press 1966
Black, S.C.: Low-level polonium and radiolead analysis. Hlth Phys. 7, 87–91 (1961)
Boucaud-Camou, E.: Etude de l'appareil digestif de Sepia officinalis L. (mollusque cephalopode). Essai d'analyse expérimentale des phénomènes digestifs, Tome I. 208 pp. Thèse de Docteur es-Sciences Naturelles, Univesité de Caen 1973
Bunt, A.H.: An ultrastructural study of the hepatopancreas of Procambarus clarkii (Girard) (Decapoda, Astacidea). Crustaceana 15, 282–288 (1968)
Cherry, R.D., E.B.D. Dowdle and G. Todd: The intracellular sites of natural 210Po in the lobster hepatopancreas. S. Afr. J. Sci. (In press)
— and L.V. Shannon: The alpha radioactivity of marine organisms. Atom. Energy Rev., Vienna 12, 1–45 (1974)
—— and M.M. Shay: Natural α-radioactivity concentrations in bone and liver from various animal species. Nature, Lond. 228, 1002–1003 (1970)
Flynn, W.W.: The determination of low levels of polonium-210 in environmental materials. Analytica chim. Acta 43, 221–227 (1968)
Folsom, T.R. and T.M. Beasley: Contributions from the alpha emitter, polonium-210, to the natural radiation environment of the marine organisms. In: Radioactive contamination of the marine environment, pp 625–632, Vienna: International Atomic Energy Agency 1973
—, K.M. Wong and V.F. Hodge: Some extreme accumulations of natural polonium radioactivity observed in certain oceanic organisms. In: The natural radiation environment II, pp 863–882. Houston, Texas: Texas University Press 1972
Hallden, N.A. and J.H. Harley: An improved alpha counting technique. Analyt. Chem. 32, 1861–1863 (1960)
Heyraud, M., S.W. Fowler, T.M. Beasley and R.D. Cherry: Polonium-210 in euphausiids: a detailed study. Mar. Biol. 34, 127–136 (1976)
Hill, C.R.: Polonium-210 in man. Nature, Lond. 208, 423–428 (1965)
Hoffman, F.L., V.F. Hodge and T.R. Folsom: Polonium radioactivity in certain mid-water fish of the eastern temporal Pacific. Hlth Phys. 26, 65–70 (1974)
Millard, H.T.: Quantitative radiochemical procedures for analysis of polonium-210 and lead-210 in minerals. Analyt. Chem. 35, 1017–1023 (1963)
Omori, M.: The biology of pelagic shrimps in the ocean. Adv. mar. Biol. 12, 233–324 (1974)
Parry, G.: Excretion. In: The physiology of Crustacea, Vol. I. pp 341–363, Ed. by T.H. Waterman. New York: Academic Press 1960
Phillips Jr., A.M.: Nutrition, digestion and energy utilization. In: Fish physiology, Vol. I. pp 391–432, Ed. by W.S. Hoar and D.J. Randall, New York: Academic Press 1969
Shannon, L.V. and M.J. Orren: A rapid method for the determination of polonium-210 and lead-210 in sea water. Analytica chim. Acta 52, 166–169 (1970)
Small, L.W. and S.W. Fowler: Turnover and vertical transport of zinc by the euphausiid Meganyctiphanes norvegica in the Ligurian Sea. Mar. Biol. 18, 284–290 (1973)
Vonk, H.J.: Digestion and metabolism. In: The physiology of Crustacea, Vol. I. pp 291–311. Ed. by T.H. Waterman. New York: Academic Press 1960
Wells, M.J.: Octopus. Physiology and behaviour of an advanced invertebrate, 417 pp. London: Chapman & Hall Ltd. 1978
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by J. M. Pérès, Marseille
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Heyraud, M., Cherry, R.D. Polonium-210 and lead-210 in marine food chains. Mar. Biol. 52, 227–236 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00398136
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00398136