Abstract
Mono-ortho and non-ortho coplanar polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were analyzed in Aroclors®, seals, and humans by graphitized carbon, a recently developed HPLC method (Hong et al. 1992b) and high-resolution gas chromatography with electron capture detection (HRGC/ECD). The concentration data were multiplied by potency factors derived from aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase (AHH) induction to give 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) equivalents. The ability to separate coplanar PCBs from the majority of PCBs has allowed the use of TCDD toxicity equivalence to compare the relative dioxin-like potency of PCB residues in the complex mixtures. The most active mixtures, Aroclors® 1254, 1248, and 1242, contained 42–54% by weight of chlorine. The results demonstrate that the apparent dioxin-like potency of PCB residues in Aroclors®, seals, and humans is dominated by three congeners, 3,3′,4,4′-tetra-, 2,3,3′,4,4′-, and 3,3′,4,4′,5-pen-tachlorobiphenyl (IUPAC nos. 77, 105, 126).
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Hong, CS., Bush, B., Xiao, J. et al. Toxic potential of non-ortho and mono-ortho coplanar polychlorinated biphenyls in Aroclors®, seals, and humans. Arch. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 25, 118–123 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00230721
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00230721