Selective Accumulation of Polychlorocamphenes in Aquatic Biota From the Canadian Arctic

Abstract

Polychlorocamphenes (PCCs; e.g., toxaphene) are major organochlorine contaminants in fish, marine mammals, and other aquatic life from the Arctic. Because PCCs yield complex GC patterns that are often greatly altered in environmental samples compared to a toxaphene standard, identification by GC with electron-capture detection is problematic. We examined PCC profiles in the blubber of narwhal (Monodon monoceros) and the liver of freshwater burbot (Lota Iota) from the Canadian Arctic by GC-negative ion mass spectrometry (GC-NIMS). Chromatograms of these specimens showed that certain PCCs were greatly enriched, compared to a toxaphene standard. Mass spectra of accumulated PCCs were consistent with octachloro-and nonachlorobornanes, with possible contribution from chlorinated bornenes. Corresponding GC peaks in the toxaphene standard appeared to be mixtures of seven-and eight-chlorine or eight-and nine-chlorine PCCs. The same peaks in biological samples showed selective accumulation of the more highly chlorinated components. To properly characterize the levels and biological effects of PCCs in arctic food chains will require isolation or synthesis of pure PCC congeners and an evaluation of their physicochemical and toxicological properties.

Seasonality in Bioaccumulation of Organochlorines in Lower Trophic Level Arctic Marine Biota

“…Ranges of OCs in meso- and macrozooplankton in our study encompass those measured previously (1986/1987) in samples collected from an Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean (). The high levels of CHBs are consistent with previously values reported for Arctic biota with selective accumulation of octachloro- and nonachlorotoxaphene congeners ( , ). Values for ΣDDT and ΣPCB are similar to those reported for marine zooplankton collected along the east coast of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1993/94 (), but concentrations of HCHs, HCB and ΣCHL in our samples are five to 10 times higher.…”

“…Ranges of OCs in meso-and macrozooplankton in our study encompass those measured previously (1986/1987) in samples collected from an Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean (5). The high levels of CHBs are consistent with previously values reported for Arctic biota with selective accumulation of octachloro-and nonachlorotoxaphene congeners (22,23).…”

Seasonality in Bioaccumulation of Organochlorines in Lower Trophic Level Arctic Marine Biota

“…Ranges of OCs in meso- and macrozooplankton in our study encompass those measured previously (1986/1987) in samples collected from an Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean (). The high levels of CHBs are consistent with previously values reported for Arctic biota with selective accumulation of octachloro- and nonachlorotoxaphene congeners ( , ). Values for ΣDDT and ΣPCB are similar to those reported for marine zooplankton collected along the east coast of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1993/94 (), but concentrations of HCHs, HCB and ΣCHL in our samples are five to 10 times higher.…”

“…Ranges of OCs in meso-and macrozooplankton in our study encompass those measured previously (1986/1987) in samples collected from an Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean (5). The high levels of CHBs are consistent with previously values reported for Arctic biota with selective accumulation of octachloro-and nonachlorotoxaphene congeners (22,23).…”

Polyaromatic hydrocarbons, chlorinated and brominated organic contaminants as tracers of feeding ecology in polar benthic amphipods

“…If all benthos were equally and predominantly exposed to OC accumulation from the sediment, then the levels should be comparable despite the different feeding strategies. However, elevated levels in benthic amphipods support earlier suggestions of a source of contaminants that differs from that to which the other benthic animals are exposed , Bidleman et al 1993, Fisk et al 2003.…”

Environmental contaminants and biomarker responses in fish from the Rio Grande and its U.S. tributaries: Spatial and temporal trends

“…3), which is consistent with recently reported concentrations at this site (TNRCC, 1994b(TNRCC, , 1997Davis et al, 1995). These values are also similar to those in fish collected from cotton-farming regions of the MRB in 1995 (Schmitt, 2002a;Schmitt et al, 2002) and may be sufficiently high to represent a threat to fish; however, the toxicity of weathered toxaphene is highly variable and cannot be determined from the 1997 data, which is based on a relatively low-resolution analytical procedure (Bidleman et al, 1993;Muir et al, 1999). Toxaphene is also a component of the fish consumption advisory for the Arroyo Colorado and nearby waters.…”

Seasonality in Bioaccumulation of Organochlorines in Lower Trophic Level Arctic Marine Biota

“…Ranges of OCs in meso- and macrozooplankton in our study encompass those measured previously (1986/1987) in samples collected from an Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean (). The high levels of CHBs are consistent with previously values reported for Arctic biota with selective accumulation of octachloro- and nonachlorotoxaphene congeners ( , ). Values for ΣDDT and ΣPCB are similar to those reported for marine zooplankton collected along the east coast of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1993/94 (), but concentrations of HCHs, HCB and ΣCHL in our samples are five to 10 times higher.…”

“…Ranges of OCs in meso-and macrozooplankton in our study encompass those measured previously (1986/1987) in samples collected from an Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean (5). The high levels of CHBs are consistent with previously values reported for Arctic biota with selective accumulation of octachloro-and nonachlorotoxaphene congeners (22,23).…”

Polyaromatic hydrocarbons, chlorinated and brominated organic contaminants as tracers of feeding ecology in polar benthic amphipods

“…If all benthos were equally and predominantly exposed to OC accumulation from the sediment, then the levels should be comparable despite the different feeding strategies. However, elevated levels in benthic amphipods support earlier suggestions of a source of contaminants that differs from that to which the other benthic animals are exposed , Bidleman et al 1993, Fisk et al 2003.…”

Environmental contaminants and biomarker responses in fish from the Rio Grande and its U.S. tributaries: Spatial and temporal trends

“…3), which is consistent with recently reported concentrations at this site (TNRCC, 1994b(TNRCC, , 1997Davis et al, 1995). These values are also similar to those in fish collected from cotton-farming regions of the MRB in 1995 (Schmitt, 2002a;Schmitt et al, 2002) and may be sufficiently high to represent a threat to fish; however, the toxicity of weathered toxaphene is highly variable and cannot be determined from the 1997 data, which is based on a relatively low-resolution analytical procedure (Bidleman et al, 1993;Muir et al, 1999). Toxaphene is also a component of the fish consumption advisory for the Arroyo Colorado and nearby waters.…”

Seasonality in Bioaccumulation of Organochlorines in Lower Trophic Level Arctic Marine Biota

“…Ranges of OCs in meso- and macrozooplankton in our study encompass those measured previously (1986/1987) in samples collected from an Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean (). The high levels of CHBs are consistent with previously values reported for Arctic biota with selective accumulation of octachloro- and nonachlorotoxaphene congeners ( , ). Values for ΣDDT and ΣPCB are similar to those reported for marine zooplankton collected along the east coast of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1993/94 (), but concentrations of HCHs, HCB and ΣCHL in our samples are five to 10 times higher.…”

“…Ranges of OCs in meso-and macrozooplankton in our study encompass those measured previously (1986/1987) in samples collected from an Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean (5). The high levels of CHBs are consistent with previously values reported for Arctic biota with selective accumulation of octachloro-and nonachlorotoxaphene congeners (22,23).…”

Polyaromatic hydrocarbons, chlorinated and brominated organic contaminants as tracers of feeding ecology in polar benthic amphipods

“…If all benthos were equally and predominantly exposed to OC accumulation from the sediment, then the levels should be comparable despite the different feeding strategies. However, elevated levels in benthic amphipods support earlier suggestions of a source of contaminants that differs from that to which the other benthic animals are exposed , Bidleman et al 1993, Fisk et al 2003.…”

Environmental contaminants and biomarker responses in fish from the Rio Grande and its U.S. tributaries: Spatial and temporal trends

“…3), which is consistent with recently reported concentrations at this site (TNRCC, 1994b(TNRCC, , 1997Davis et al, 1995). These values are also similar to those in fish collected from cotton-farming regions of the MRB in 1995 (Schmitt, 2002a;Schmitt et al, 2002) and may be sufficiently high to represent a threat to fish; however, the toxicity of weathered toxaphene is highly variable and cannot be determined from the 1997 data, which is based on a relatively low-resolution analytical procedure (Bidleman et al, 1993;Muir et al, 1999). Toxaphene is also a component of the fish consumption advisory for the Arroyo Colorado and nearby waters.…”