Analysis of PFAAs in American alligators part 1: Concentrations in alligators harvested for consumption during South Carolina public hunts

Environmental contamination resulting from the production or release of harmful chemicals can lead to negative consequences for wildlife and human health. Perfluorinated alkyl acids (PFAAs) were historically produced as protective coatings for many household items and currently persist in the environment, wildlife, and humans. PFAAs have been linked to immune suppression, endocrine disruption, and developmental toxicity in wildlife and laboratory studies. This study examines the American alligator, Alligator mississippiensis, as an important indicator of ecosystem contamination and a potential pathway for PFAA exposure in humans. Alligator meat harvested in the 2015 South Carolina (SC) public hunt season and prepared for human consumption was collected and analyzed for PFAAs to determine meat concentrations and relationships with animal body size (total length), sex, and location of harvest. Of the 15 PFAAs analyzed, perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) was found in all alligator meat samples and at the highest concentrations (median 6.73 ng/g). No relationship was found between PFAA concentrations and total length or sex. Concentrations of one or all compounds varied significantly across sampling locations, with alligators harvested in the Middle Coastal hunt unit having the highest PFOS concentrations (median 16.0 ng/g; p = 0.0001). Alligators harvested specifically from Berkley County, SC (located in the Middle Coastal hunt unit) had the highest PFOS concentrations and the greatest number of PFAAs detected (p < 0.0001). The site-specific nature of PFAA concentrations in alligator meat observed in this study suggests a source of PFAA contamination in Berkley County, SC.     

城市水环境PFAAs前驱体污染特征及健康风险

为揭示城市水环境中前驱体对全氟烷基酸（PFAAs）输入特征、分布格局及健康风险的影响,对南京城市污水处理厂出水、河流、湖泊、长江饮用水源地等水体进行了考察.利用HPLC-MS/MS及总可氧化前驱体法（TOP Assay）分析了17种PFAAs与其总可氧化前驱体的污染特征,并通过推演耐受剂量评估了饮水途径的健康风险商（HQ）.结果表明,污水处理厂出水中PFAAs浓度90.6~278ng/L,主要单体PFBS、PFHxA、PFOA占总浓度的63%;总可氧化前驱体浓度239~839pmol/L,PFBA前驱体含量最高.城市地表水中PFAAs浓度61.8~157ng/L,总可氧化前驱体浓度195~572pmol/L,PFBA、PFPeA、PFHxA 3种全氟羧酸的前驱体含量最高,城市河流流经人口密集区后,PFAAs赋存浓度有所上升,但总可氧化前驱体浓度下降.饮用水源地中PFAAs浓度50.9~54.6ng/L,总可氧化前驱体浓度273~372pmol/L,以PFBA、PFPeA和PFHxA 3种全氟羧酸的前驱体为主.相对高风险来源于PFOS的免疫毒性（HQ=0.024）以及PFOA的发育毒性（HQ=0.0073）和生殖毒性（HQ=0.0039）,可氧化前驱体转化可能将二者潜在风险提高23%和40%.水环境中广泛赋存的前驱体可能增加PFAAs的环境暴露及健康风险.     

母乳中全氟化合物的污染水平与婴儿暴露评估

为探索北京市产妇母乳中典型全氟化合物的污染水平及婴儿经母乳的外暴露水平及风险.于2011~2012年通过征集母乳捐献志愿者方式采集95份母乳样本,并填写调查表,记录母乳捐献者的人口学特征及居住环境等信息.采用固相萃取结合超高效液相色谱-串联质谱法测定母乳中全氟辛酸及全氟辛烷磺酸的含量,估算婴儿经母乳的每日摄入量并与参考剂量进行比较.结果显示北京市产妇母乳中全氟辛酸含量均值和中位数分别为42和37.4pg/m L,范围在13.4~181.3pg/m L之间.全氟辛烷磺酸含量高于全氟辛酸,均值、中位数和范围分别为66.6、54.5和14~390.3pg/m L,统计分析发现全氟辛酸与体重指数呈正相关但与母乳产出时间呈负相关,而全氟辛烷磺酸则与产妇年龄呈正相关.婴儿经母乳全氟辛酸和全氟辛烷磺酸每日摄入量中值分别为4.67和6.81ng/(kg bw·d),最高值分别为22.66和48.79ng/(kg bw·d),显示部分婴儿经母乳摄入的全氟辛烷磺酸水平超过了参考剂量,健康风险值得关注.     

Tissue distribution of perfluoroalkyl acids and health status in wild Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) from Loskop Dam, Mpumalanga, South Africa

This study examined concentrations of 15 perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) in tissues from male Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) collected at Loskop Dam, Mpumalanga, South Africa in 2014 and 2016. Nine of the 15 PFAAs were detected frequently and were included in statistical analysis and included two of the most commonly known PFAAs, perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) (median, 41.6 ng/g) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) (median, 0.0825 ng/g). Of the tissues measured, plasma (2016 and 2014 median, 22.2 ng/g) contained the highest PFAA burden followed by (in descending order): liver (median, 11.6 ng/g), kidney (median, 9.04 ng/g), spleen (median, 5.92 ng/g), adipose (median, 2.54 ng/g), and muscle (median, 1.11 ng/g). Loskop Dam tilapia have been affected by an inflammatory disease of the adipose tissue known as pansteatitis, so this study also aimed to investigate relationships between PFAA tissue concentrations and incidence of pansteatitis or fish health status. Results revealed that healthy tilapia exhibited an overall higher (p-value < 0.05) PFAA burden than pansteatitis-affected tilapia across all tissues. Further analysis showed that organs previously noted in the literature to contain the highest PFAA concentrations, such as kidney, liver, and plasma, were the organs driving the difference in PFAA burden between the two tilapia groups. Care must be taken in the interpretations we draw from not only the results of our study, but also other PFAA measurements made on populations (human and wildlife alike) under differing health status.     

PFOS/PFOA环境污染行为与毒性效应及机理研究进展

全氟辛烷磺酰基化合物（PFOS）和全氟辛酸（PFOA）是一类新型的持久性有机污染物（POPs）,近年来发现在环境系统中日益广泛分布,并在生物体内蓄积或发生致毒效应.本文首先从PFOS/PFOA在环境中的污染及其水平、在野生动物体内的暴露、对人体的暴露以及污染与暴露变化趋势等4个方面,分析了PFOS/PFOA最新的环境污染与生物暴露情况;从PFOS/PFOA在大气环境中的转运转化过程、在污水污泥中转运转化过程以及在生物体内的蓄积、代谢转化与降解过程等3个方面,阐述了PFOS/PFOA在环境中的迁移转化行为;还概述了最近几年在PFOS/PFOA所导致的生态效应及其可能的机理研究进展.最后,尝试性地提出了今后在PFOS/PFOA污染生态学方面的研究重点.     

全氟和多氟烷基化合物的环境风险评估研究现状、不确定性与趋势分析

本研究系统梳理了国际学术界关于全氟和多氟烷基化合物(perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances,PFASs)的术语、范畴和应用物质的界定与变迁,以PFASs的环境危害性评估和暴露评估为重心,综述评析当前关于PFASs环境风险评估研究现状、不确定性和发展趋势.总体上,PFASs风险评估正面临着物质谱系复杂、种类众多、衍生关系复杂、商业秘密及风险不确定的复杂局面.尽管长链PFASs的环境风险已获广泛认可,但以其替代品形式大量涌现的短链PFASs及各类短链氟调聚物的环境危害性、环境行为和暴露风险则尚存很多的不确定性与研究空白,国际社会对于PFASs的风险控制范畴值得商榷.PFASs替代物质的结构和风险信息因商业秘密及市场竞争因素而缺乏公开性和透明度,多数含氟和非氟替代品的环境风险尚有待识别.总之,国际上对PFASs风险评估研究呈现出由以全氟辛烷磺酸类化合物(perfluorooctane sulfonic acid,PFOS)和全氟辛酸类化合物(perfluorooctanoic acid,PFOA)等为代表的长链全氟烷基酸(perfluoroalkyl acids,PFAAs)逐步扩展到短链PFAAs,再扩展到其他非PFAAs的PFASs物种的发展趋势.当前亟待解决及未来将持续研究关注的主要问题:关于短链PFASs的生物累积性和环境迁移性等关键环境危害性的评估指标和方法的优化,以及其环境释放和多介质环境归趋;中性PFASs的环境归趋及其作为短链PFAAs潜在前体物质的转化与贡献;未来PFASs含氟或非氟替代品的风险识别和评估.     

温州近海海域海水及滩涂沉积物中PFOS和PFOA污染特征分析

为了解温州近海海域全氟辛烷磺酸(PFOS)和全氟辛酸(PFOA)的污染状况和特征,采用固相萃取/高效液相串联质谱检测法分析了采自乐清湾、瓯江口、西湾、飞云江口及洞头半屏岛的近海海水和滩涂沉积物中PFOS和PFOA污染水平。结果显示,温州近海海水普遍存在PFOS和PFOA污染,其中,PFOS的浓度范围为<1.0～31.36 ng/L,中位浓度为2.29 ng/L;PFOA的浓度范围为<1.0～23.66 ng/L,中位浓度为5.29 ng/L。滩涂沉积物样品中PFOS和PFOA的浓度范围(干重)分别为(<1.0～11.91)×10-9(中位浓度为3.60×10-9)和(1.84～34.01)×10-9(中位浓度为6.83×10-9)。温州近海海水中PFOS和PFOA的污染水平明显高于香港沿岸、中国南海海水、韩国沿岸海水和近海珠江三角洲,与大连湾的海水相当,海岸滩涂沉积物中的PFOS和PFOA浓度远高于珠江和黄浦江沉积物中的浓度。     

Ecotoxicological effects of waterborne PFOS exposure on swimming performance and energy expenditure in juvenile goldfish (Carassius auratus)

The potential risks of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) are of increasing ecological concern. Swimming performance is linked to the fitness and health of fish. However, the impacts of PFOS on swimming performance remain largely unknown. We investigated the ecotoxicological effects of acute exposure to PFOS on the swimming performance and energy expenditure of juvenile goldfish (Carassius auratus). The fish were exposed to a range of PFOS concentrations (0, 0.5, 2, 8 and 32 mg/L) for 48 hr. The spontaneous swimming activity, fast-start swimming performance, critical swimming speed (Ucrit) and active metabolic rate (AMR) of the goldfish were examined after exposure to PFOS. PFOS exposure resulted in remarkable effects on spontaneous activity. Motion distance was reduced, and the proportion of motionless time increased with increasing concentrations of PFOS. However, no significant alterations in the fast-start performance-related kinematic parameters, such as latency time, maximum linear velocity, maximum linear acceleration or escape distance during the first 120 msec after stimulus, were observed after PFOS exposure. Unexpectedly, although PFOS exposure had marked influences on the swimming oxygen consumption rates and AMR of goldfish, the U crit of the goldfish was not significantly affected by PFOS. This may result in a noteworthy increase in the energetic cost of transport. The overall results indicate that, in contrast to spontaneous activity, underlying swimming capabilities are maintained in goldfish after short-term exposure to PFOS, but energy expenditure during the process of swimming is dramatically aggravated.     

Inhibition effects of perfluoroalkyl acids on progesterone production in mLTC-1

Perfluoroalkyl substances(PFASs) are a class of fluorine substituted carboxylic acid, sulfonic acid and alcohol, structurally similar to their corresponding parent compounds. Previous study demonstrated the potential endocrine disruption and reproductive toxicity of perfluorooctane sulfonic acid and perfluorooctanoic acid, two dominant PFASs in animals and humans. We explored the relationship between eleven perfluoroalkyl acids(PFAAs)with different carbon chain length and their ability to inhibit progesterone production in mouse Leydig tumor cells(m LTC-1). We found an obvious dose–response relationship between progesterone inhibition rate and PFAA exposure concentration in m LTC-1. The relative inhibition rate of progesterone by PFAAs was linearly related to the carbon chain length and molar refractivity of PFAAs. Mitochondrial membrane potential(MMP) decreased after PFAA exposure at the half-maximal inhibitory effect concentration(IC_(50)) of progesterone production in m LTC-1, while the reactive oxygen species(ROS) content increased significantly. These results imply that the inhibition effect of PFAAs on progesterone production might be due, in part, to ROS damage and the decrease in MMP in m LTC-1.     

深圳居民膳食壬基酚和辛基酚暴露的风险评估

为了解深圳市居民壬基酚和辛基酚的膳食暴露水平并预测其风险,利用深圳总膳食研究采集的膳食调查数据及代表性膳食样品进行暴露评估:采用分层整群随机抽样方法,抽取深圳城市区和农村区的244户居民、853人进行家庭膳食调查,利用3d 24h回顾法和称重记账法采集食物消费量数据;同时,采用高效液相色谱-质谱分析手段检测膳食样品中的壬基酚和辛基酚含量;并用风险指数评估人群暴露风险.结果表明,深圳城市区、农村区、深圳市居民的壬基酚膳食暴露水平分别为89.7,128.9,116.2ng/(kg×bw);辛基酚的暴露水平分别为42.7,35.3,39.3ng/(kg×bw).深圳城市区、农村区、深圳市居民壬基酚膳食暴露的风险指数分别为0.02、0.03、0.02,辛基酚的风险指数均为0.0004.深圳市居民壬基酚的膳食暴露水平高于辛基酚,但两者的风险指数均远低于1,暴露风险在可接受范围之内.