Global Pollution Monitoring of Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers Using Skipjack Tuna as a Bioindicator

Abstract

To elucidate the global distribution of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), these chemicals were determined in the muscle of skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) collected from offshore waters of various regions in the world (Japan, Taiwan, Philippines, Indonesia, Seychelles, and Brazil, and the Japan Sea, East China Sea, South China Sea, Indian Ocean, and North Pacific Ocean). PBDEs were detected in almost all the skipjack tuna collected from the locations surveyed (from < 0.1 to 53 ng/g of lipid), indicating widespread contamination by these compounds in the marine environment. Residue levels of PBDEs in these samples from the northern hemisphere seem to be higher than those from the southern hemisphere, which is plausibly due to larger usage of these compounds in the northern hemisphere. Higher concentrations of PBDEs were detected in the samples from waters around the East China Sea (up to 53 ng/g of lipid). Developing countries around the East China Sea are supposedly the "hot spots" releasing these chemicals into the marine environment. With regard to the composition of PBDE congeners, the percentage contribution by lower brominated congeners (BDE15, -28, and -47) showed an increasing trend with increasing latitude. On the other hand, higher brominated congeners (BDE153, -154, and -183) showed a reverse trend. These patterns suggest that lower brominated congeners of PBDEs (di-, tri-, and tetra-BDEs) were preferentially transported from pollution sources to northern colder regions through the atmosphere. PBDEs may have a high potency to cause global pollution like PCBs.

Brominated Flame Retardants in Polar Bears (Ursus maritimus) from Alaska, the Canadian Arctic, East Greenland, and Svalbard

“…The declining ΣPBDE concentrations in fur seals from Northern Japan during the 1990s suggests that eastern Asia was not a strong source region for Br4-Br6-PBDEs in the northern Bering Sea and Chukchi area. PBDEs (Br4-Br6) in skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) from the central North Pacific were also much lower than in samples from the Japan Sea and the East China Sea (38).…”

“…The detection of BDE183 and BDE209 in the plasma of female Svalbard bears (24) also suggests exposure of bears to BDE183 and BDE209 in the food web and this could be underestimated as a consequence of metabolic debromination. Ueno et al (38) found higher ratios of BDE 47/99 in skipjack tuna with increasing latitude in the western North Pacific Ocean which they attributed to greater long-range transport of BDE47. Thus discrimination among isomers during long-range transport, as well as during bioaccumulation and metabolism, is influencing the congener pattern observed in polar bears and, as a result, source signatures could be lost.…”

Maternal transfer of xenobiotics and effects on larval striped bass in the San Francisco Estuary

“…PBDEs are now as ubiquitous as PCBs in the aquatic environment, and their levels are rising due to a lack of regulation (35,36). It is now believed that PBDEs have spread throughout the world's oceans (35,37), and as a consequence have been found in many aquatic organisms, including fish, where they have bioaccumulated to biologically relevant levels (33). The aquatic environment of the fish we investigated is one of the most contaminated regions worldwide, and studies have shown PBDE levels in breast milk from women living in the San Francisco Bay area up to 100 times greater than those in other regions of the world (8).…”

Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers in Mudsnails (Cipangopaludina cahayensis) and Sediments from an Electronic Waste Recycling Region in South China

“…The electronic waste (e-waste) recycling especially uncontrolled dismantling aggravated the process (Julander et al 2005). So PBDEs become ubiquitous in the environment (Ueno et al 2004). Furthermore, most toxicological studies have shown that serious health consequences, such as thyroidogenic, estrogenic, and hepatic effects as well as neurodevelopmental disorders, could result from prolonged exposure to PBDEs (Darnerud et al 2001).…”