Internal and Maternal Distribution of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Sea Turtle Tissues: A Meta-Analysis

Muñoz, C. C. and Hendriks, A. J. and Ragas, A. M. J. and Vermeiren, P.

Environ Sci Technol (2021) 55: 10012–10024

DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c02845

Abstract

We aimed to identify patterns in the internal distribution of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and assess contributing factors using sea turtles and their offspring as a case study of a long-lived wildlife species. We systematically synthesized 40 years of data and developed a lipid database to test whether lipid-normalized POP concentrations are equal among tissues as expected under steady state for lipophilic compounds. Results supported equal partitioning among tissues with high blood flow or perfusion including the heart, kidney, muscle, and lung. Observed differences in the brain, fat, and blood plasma, however, suggest the physiological influence of the blood-brain barrier, limited perfusion, and protein content, respectively. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers partitioned comparably to legacy POPs. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, meanwhile, partitioned more into the lung, colon, and muscle compared to the liver under chronic and acute field exposure. Partitioning ratios of individual POPs among tissues were significantly related to the lipophilicity of compounds (as estimated by K(ow)) in half of the observed cases, and significant differences between juveniles and adults underscore physiological differences across life stages. The comprehensive tissue partitioning patterns presented here provide a quantitative basis to support comparative assessments of POP pollution derived from biomonitoring among multiple tissues.

Citation

Muñoz, C. C., Hendriks, A. J., Ragas, A. M. J., & Vermeiren, P. (2021). Internal and Maternal Distribution of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Sea Turtle Tissues: A Meta-Analysis. Environ Sci Technol, 55(14), 10012–10024. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c02845 Animals, Environmental Monitoring, *Water Pollutants, Chemical, Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers/analysis, *Environmental Pollutants/analysis, *chemical partitioning, *diffusion limitation, *fugacity capacity, *lipophilicity, *maternal transfer, *pollution biomonitoring, *Polychlorinated Biphenyls, *tissue affinity, *tissue physiology, *tissue residue, *Turtles, Persistent Organic Pollutants

Keywords

• Animals
• Environmental Monitoring
• *Water Pollutants
• Chemical
• Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers/analysis
• *Environmental Pollutants/analysis
• *chemical partitioning
• *diffusion limitation
• *fugacity capacity
• *lipophilicity
• *maternal transfer
• *pollution biomonitoring
• *Polychlorinated Biphenyls
• *tissue affinity
• *tissue physiology
• *tissue residue
• *Turtles
• Persistent Organic Pollutants