Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are environmental pollutants with an important bioaccumulation potential. However, their metabolism and distribution in humans are not well studied. In this study, the concentrations of 21 PFASs were analyzed in 99 samples of autopsy tissues (brain, liver, lung, bone, and kidney) from subjects who had been living in Tarragona (Catalonia, Spain). The samples were analyzed by solvent extraction and online purification by turbulent flow and liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. The occurrence of PFASs was confirmed in all human tissues. Although PFASs accumulation followed particular trends depending on the specific tissue, some similarities were found. In kidney and lung, perfluorobutanoic acid was the most frequent compound, and at highest concentrations (median values: 263 and 807ng/g in kidney and lung, respectively). In liver and brain, perfluorohexanoic acid showed the maximum levels (median: 68.3 and 141ng/g, respectively), while perfluorooctanoic acid was the most contributively in bone (median: 20.9ng/g). Lung tissues accumulated the highest concentration of PFASs. However, perfluorooctane sulfonic acid and perfluorooctanoic acid were more prevalent in liver and bone, respectively. To the best of our knowledge, the accumulation of different PFASs in samples of various human tissues from the same subjects is here reported for the very first time. The current results may be of high importance for the validation of physiologically based pharmacokinetic models, which are being developed for humans. However, further studies on the distribution of the same compounds in the human body are still required.

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Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) are ubiquitous contaminants of humans and animals worldwide. PFCs are bioaccumulated because of their affinity for proteins. It has been shown they could have a variety of toxicological effects and cause damage to human health, emphasizing the need for sensitive and robust analytical methods to assess their bioaccumulation in humans. In this paper we report the development and validation of an analytical method for analysis of PFCs in the non-invasive human matrices hair and urine. The method is based on rapid and simple sample pre-treatment followed by online turbulent flow liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (TFC-LC-MS-MS) for analysis of 21 PFCs. The method was validated for both matrices. Percentage recovery was between 60 and 105 for most compounds in both matrices. Limits of quantification ranged from 0.1 to 9 ng mL(-1) in urine and from 0.04 to 13.4 in hair. The good performance of the method was proved by investigating the presence of selected PFCs in 24 hair and 30 urine samples from different donors living in Barcelona (NE Spain). The results were indicative of bioaccumulation of these compounds in both types of sample. PFOS and PFOA were most frequently detected in hair and PFBA in urine.

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