Occurrence of perfluorooctane sulfonate and other perfluorinated alkylated substances in harbor porpoises from the Black Sea

• Published in: Environmental Science & Technology
• Main Authors: Van de Vijver, Kristin Inneke, Holsbeek, Ludo, Das, Krishna, Blust, Ronny, Joiris, Claude, De Coen, Wim
• Other Authors: MARE - Centre Interfacultaire de Recherches en Océanologie - ULiège
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Amer Chemical Soc 2007
• Subjects: Phocoena phocoena relicta; marine mammals; PFOS; PFAs; harbour porpoise; Black Sea; stable isotopes; perfluorinated alkylated substances; Life sciences; Environmental sciences & ecology; Aquatic sciences & oceanology; Physical; chemical; mathematical & earth Sciences; Chemistry; Sciences du vivant; Sciences de l’environnement & écologie; Sciences aquatiques & océanologie; Physique; chimie; mathématiques & sciences de la terre; Harbour porpoise; Phocoena phocoena
• Online Access: https://orbi.uliege.be/handle/2268/1341; https://doi.org/10.1021/es060827e

peer reviewed Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and other perfluorinated alkylated substances (PFAS) were determined in liver, kidney, muscle, brain, and blubber samples of 31 harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena relicta) of different age and sex stranded along the Ukrainian coast of the Black Sea. In all individuals and in all tissues, PFOS was the predominant PFAS, accounting for on average 90% of the measured PFAS load. PFOS concentrations were the highest in liver (327 +/- 351 ng/g wet wt) and kidney (147 +/- 262 ng/g wet wt) tissue, and lower in blubber (18 +/- 8 ng/g wet wt), muscle (41 +/- 50 ng/g wet wt), and brain (24 +/- 23 ng/g wet wt). No significant differences could be determined between males and females, nor between juvenile and adult animals (p > 0.05). Perfluorononanoic acid, perfluorodecanoic acid, perfluoroundecanoic acid, and perfluorododecanoic acid could be detected in liver tissue of approximately 25% of the individuals. Perfluorobutane sulfonate, perfluorobutanoic acid, and perfluorooctanoic acid were not detected in any of the porpoise livers. Although we investigated a potential intraspecies segregation according to the source of prey, using stable isotopes, no statistically significant correlation between PFOS concentrations and stable isotopes could be determined. It is, however, noteworthy that the contamination by PFOS in the Black Sea harbor porpoises is comparable to levels found in porpoises from the German Baltic Sea and from coastal areas near Denmark and, therefore, might pose a threat to this population.