Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) and Their Influence to Some Aquatic Species

Abstract

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous environmental pollutants generated primarily during the incomplete combustion of organic materials (e.g., coal, oil, petrol, and wood). Many PAHs have toxic, mutagenic, and/or carcinogenic functions. PAHs are highly lipid soluble which lead to a fast absorption by the gastrointestinal tract of marine mammals. They are immediately distributed in a vast variety of tissues with a notable tendency for localization in body fat. Metabolism of PAHs is obtained via the cytochrome P450-mediated mixed function oxidase system with oxidation or hydroxylation as the first step. PAHs are environmental contaminants that pose significant risk to health of fish. The effect of PAHs on fish is a topic of rising attention in a lot of countries. Different studies using the bile metabolites separated by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection were presented. The aim is to compare the levels of PAH metabolites in fish from different areas and fish species. The major metabolite present in all fish was 1-hydroxypyrene. The data confirm the importance of 1-hydroxypyrene as the key PAH metabolite in fish bile and suggest that the European eel is an ideal species for monitoring PAHs.

Certification of Standard Reference Material® 1936 Great Lakes Sediment

“…PAHs are highly lipid soluble and accumulate in body fat. PAHs are ubiquitous environmental contaminants that pose significant risk to the health of marine species [2].…”

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Mullus surmuletus from the Catania Gulf (Sicily, Italy): distribution and potential health risks

“…In the marine environment, PAHs are usually adsorbed on small solid particles suspended, as well as on sediments, and thus they may enter the tissues of fish and other marine organisms through the food chain. However, whereas until 2007 the scientific community thought that the biomagnification and bioaccumulation processes, in edible marine organisms, can introduce PAHs in humans through the diet (Domingo et al 2007), it has recently been demonstrated (Baali and Yahyaoui 2019;Franco and Lavado 2019) that PAHs are quickly metabolised in fresh fish and do not accumulate in the muscle meat. In fact, due to the inducible enzymes of the cytochrome P450 family (Frasco and Guilhermino 2002), in particular CYP1A, that catalyse the addition of an oxygen atom to the PAH molecules, these last become highly polar conjugated metabolites that are then excreted into the urine or the bile for rapid elimination over the gastrointestinal tract.…”

Study of the Water Quality Index and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon for a River Receiving Treated Landfill Leachate

“…Cancer in fish and especially in benthic organisms in natural aquatic systems has also been reported. Baali and Yahyaoui [12] reported that benzo [a] pyrene leads to a decrease in weight and growth, an increase in the gonado-somatic index (GSI) in Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes), and teratogenic effects on the heart of sardines (Clupea pallasii), zebrafish, and anemia in scorpion fish (Sebastes schlegelii).…”