Bioaccumulation of hydroxylated polychlorinated biphenyls and pentachlorophenol in the serum of northern elephant seal pups (Mirounga angustirostris)

• Published in: Environmental Research
• Main Authors: Louis, Caroline, Covaci, Adrian, Stas, Marie, Crocker, Daniel E., Govindan, Malarvannan, Dirtu, Alin, Debier, Cathy
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: Chemistry; Biology; Human medicine; Nes; Nes’; Elephant Seal; Elephant Seals
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10067/1227900151162165141

Abstract: Northern elephant seals (NES) (Mirounga angustirostris) from the A (n) over tildeo Nuevo State Reserve (CA, USA) were sampled at 1-, 4-, 7- and 10-week post-weaning. Concentrations of hydroxylated polychlorinated biphenyls (HO-PCBs) and their parent PCBs were measured in the serum of each individual. The Sigma HO-PCB concentrations in the serum increased significantly between early and late fast (from 282 +/- 20 to 529 +/- 31 pg/mL). This increase might result from a mobilisation of HO-PCBs transferred from the mother during gestation and/or lactation and stored in the pup's liver. Food deprivation has been shown to exacerbate biotransformation capacities in mammals, birds and fish. The HO-penta-CBs was the predominant homologue group, followed by HO-hexa-CBs and HO-hepta-CBs. No preferential pathway for the metabolism of HO-PCBs (HO-direct insertion or NIH-shift of a chlorine atom) could be evidenced. The concentrations of pentachlorophenol (PCP) in the serum of weaned NES increased from 103 +/- 7 pg/mL at early fast to 246 +/- 41 pg/mL at late fast, which is within the range of PCP concentrations usually encountered in marine mammals. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.