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Species-Specific Bioaccumulation of Halogenated Organic Pollutants and Their Metabolites in Fish Serum from an E-Waste Site, South China

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Abstract

Halogenated organic pollutants (HOPs)—including organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenylethers (PBDEs), polybromobiphenyls (PBBs), dechlorane plus (DP), tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA), and hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs) as well as PCB metabolites (methylsulfone [MeSO2-]) and hydroxylated (OH-) PCBs and OH-PBDEs—were determined in the serum of mud carp and northern snakehead from an electronic-waste (e-waste) site in South China. The average concentrations (mean ± SD) of ΣPCBs, ΣPBDEs, ΣOCPs, ΣPBBs, ΣTBBPA, ΣHBCDs, and ΣDP were 1410 ± 324, 70 ± 20, 3.0 ± 0.4, 2.8 ± 0.8, 1.6 ± 0.4, 1.0 ± 0.2, and 0.3 ± 0.03 ng/g wet weight (ww) in mud carp and 6430 ± 781, 468 ± 49, 22.4 ± 1.1, 7.0 ± 0.6, 2.9 ± 2.3, 5.5 ± 1.1, and 4.6 ± 0.6 ng/g ww in northern snakehead, respectively. MeSO2-PCBs, OH-PCBs, and OH-PBDEs were detected at a total concentration of 0.44 ± 0.03 and 9.7 ± 0.3 ng/g ww in mud carp and northern snakehead, respectively. The congener profiles of PCBs, PBDEs, OH/MeSO2-PCBs, and OH-PBDEs were found to be significantly different between the two fish species, possibly as a result of species-specific bioaccumulation and/or metabolism of the HOPs. Chirality of ten PCB congeners and α-HBCD, as well as the f anti values of DP in the serum samples, supported the species-specific biotransformation of HOPs. Furthermore, the presence of covaried and counter-varied enantiomeric fractions of PCBs between the two fish species indicated species- and congener-specific enantiomer enrichment of PCBs.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported financially by the Ministry of Environmental protection of the China (Grant No. 201309030-02), the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. KZCX-EW-QN105), and the National Nature Science Foundation of China (Grants No. 41273118 and 41230639). This is contribution No. IS-1904 from GIGCAS.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    Yan-Hong Zeng, Xiao-Jun Luo, Xiao-Bo Zheng, Bin Tang, Jiang-Ping Wu & Bi-Xian Mai

  2. Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Yan-Hong Zeng, Xiao-Bo Zheng & Bin Tang

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  1. Yan-Hong Zeng
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  2. Xiao-Jun Luo
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Correspondence to Xiao-Jun Luo.

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Zeng, YH., Luo, XJ., Zheng, XB. et al. Species-Specific Bioaccumulation of Halogenated Organic Pollutants and Their Metabolites in Fish Serum from an E-Waste Site, South China. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 67, 348–357 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-014-0040-8

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