Transfer of polychlorinated biphenyls from marine sediment to a benthic fish (Pleuronectes yokohamae)

Abstract

We examined the transfer of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from suspended and bottom sediments to a benthic fish species (Pleuronectes yokohamae) by conducting laboratory experiments and determined the distribution of PCBs in the fish tissues. The mean total PCB concentrations in individual tissues and whole body of the fish exposed to bottom sediment (including suspended sediment) in the bottom sediment tank for 28 days increased to levels 3–5 times the initial concentrations, whereas those in the fish exposed only to suspended sediment in the suspended sediment tank did not increase. The congeners #52/#69, #70, #66, #101, #122/#123, and #153 were the most abundant congeners in the fish from the bottom sediment tank, reflecting the congeners that were abundant in the water and sediment in addition to those abundant in the fish in the control tank. The proportional distribution of the PCB burden to different tissues of the fish was similar in all the treatment groups, and within each treatment group, the proportion of the congeners and their homologues was relatively consistent among all tissues. Results of a mass-balance analysis indicated that in the fish exposed to bottom sediments, the sediment contributed to an average of 0% (#138) to 81% (#132) of the increase in 13 congeners (penta- and hexa-CBs).