Perfluorinated Compounds in Aquatic Products from Bohai Bay, Tianjin, China

ABSTRACT To understand concentrations of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in aquatic products, and risks to human health, concentrations of 12 PFCs were measured in edible tissues of aquatic products collected from Tianjin, China, a typical industrial area on the western Bohai Sea. Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) was the predominant PFC. Concentrations of PFOS in aquatic products from Tianjin Binhai New Area (TBNA) ranged from <0.10 to 241 ng/g wet weight, with the greatest concentration observed in the edible portions of mullet (Mugil so-iuy Basilewsky). Concentrations of PFOS in mullet from the TBNA were greater than those in other species of lower trophic levels, which suggests biomagnification. Concentrations of PFOS in aquatic products from markets were greater than those of locally farmed or wild marine products. Relatively great concentrations of PFOS were not only observed in products from the rapidly growing industrial areas such as Tangu District (TG) and Hangu District (HG), but also in less industrialized areas like the Dagang District (DG). The results of the hazard assessment indicated that consumption of seawater-farmed fish and market fish posed a greater hazard than wild marine fish or freshwater-farmed fish, but the risk to human health was not great. Key Words: PFOSPFOAseafood productfish consumptionhuman exposurehealth risk. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This study was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China with Grant No.41071355, the National Basic Research Program of China (“973” Research Program) with Grant No.2007CB407307, the External Cooperation Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences with Grant No.GJHZ0948, and the State Key Laboratory Project with Grant No.SKLURE2008-1-4. Portions of the research were supported by a Discovery Grant from the National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (Project Nos. 326415-07). Prof. Giesy's participation in the project was supported by the Einstein Professorship Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.