Trends of polyfluoroalkyl compounds in marine biota and in humans

Abstract

Environmental context. Polyfluoroalkyl compounds are used in a variety of industrial and consumer applications, including polymer production and for surface treatment of textiles and paper. Research over the last 10 years has shown that these compounds are ubiquitous environmental contaminants -they are extremely persistent, show toxic effects and accumulate in the food chain. We evaluate global, temporal and spatial trends of these important emerging contaminants.Abstract. This review gives an overview of existing knowledge of polyfluoroalkyl compounds (PFCs) in humans and in marine biota. Temporal trends and spatial distribution of PFCs were globally compared in humans, marine mammals, seabirds and fish. In general, PFC concentrations in the environment have increased significantly from the beginning of the production up to the 1990s. After the phase-out of perfluorooctane sulfonyl fluoride (POSF) production starting in 2000, PFC concentrations in humans generally decreased. In marine biota no clear temporal trends were observed. The temporal trends depended on the species, their trophic levels and the geographical locations. PFC patterns in humans and in marine wildlife species were compared regarding perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), their shorter and longer chain homologues (C 4 -C 15 ) and precursor compounds. Finally knowledge gaps were identified and recommendations for future work were presented.

Perfluorinated compounds in red-throated divers from the German Baltic Sea: new findings from their distribution in 10 different tissues

“…[18,20] In contrast to birds, PFNA was the dominating compound among PFCAs found in mammals. [16,40] As far as analysed, PFUnDA and PFTriDA were observed in highest concentrations in fish of other regions [12,34,40] as well as in fish of the Baltic Sea. [41] Therefore, it was supposed that high concentrations of PFUnDA and PFTriDA in tissue samples of piscivorous seabirds may reflect the PFC pattern of their food.…”

“…[14,34] Liver samples from the Canadian Arctic or the North Pacific were less contaminated whereas concentrations in those of brown pelicans from North America were more than two-fold higher. [34] A cluster analysis was performed with the standardised PFC concentrations of the 10 sample tissues (refer to the method section). Results of the cluster analysis are presented in the dendrogram in Fig.…”

What is the effect of phasing out long-chain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances on the concentrations of perfluoroalkyl acids and their precursors in the environment? A systematic review

“…PFCAs in water are relatively bioavailable and have been detected in various living organisms [10][11][12][13][14], including humans [15,16]. Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) was the PFCA manufactured in the largest quantity.…”

Temporal variations of perfluoroalkyl substances and polybrominated diphenyl ethers in alpine snow

“…An increasing number of scientific studies highlight the distribution, persistence, bioaccumulation potential and toxic properties of PFASs and PBDEs (Ahrens, 2011;Butt et al, 2010;Birnbaum and Staskal, 2003;De Wit, 2002;Dreyer et al, 2009a;Hites, 2004;Lau et al, 2007;Sturm and Ahrens, 2010). As a result of international environmental concerns culminating in the 2009 addition to the Stockholm Convention (Stockholm Convention 2009a,b), industry introduced voluntary phase-outs of these substances and governments launched restrictions for the use and production of several PFASs (>C8) and PBDEs (3M, 2010;European Union, 2003, 2006.…”

“…Other types of natural archives or sampling techniques that record temporal trends of PBDEs include long-term passive sampling (Schuster et al, 2010), vegetation and soil samples (Hassanin et al, 2005;Schuster et al, 2011), and lake sediment cores Kohler et al, 2008). Peat bogs, human serum, sediment cores and associated biota record PFASs back to the 1950s (Ahrens et al, 2009;Dreyer et al, 2012;Sturm and Ahrens, 2010). However, sediment cores are influenced by their catchment areas and it is difficult to separate atmospheric and aquatic signals (Shotyk et al, 2004).…”