title: Perfluorinated compounds in fish and blood of anglers at Lake Möhne, Sauerland area, Germany.
abstract: Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) were measured in fish samples and blood plasma of anglers in a cross-sectional study at Lake Möhne, Sauerland area, Germany. Human plasma and drinking water samples were analyzed by solid phase extraction, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). PFCs in fish fillet were measured by ion pair extraction followed by HPLC and MS/MS. PFOS concentrations in 44 fish samples of Lake Möhne ranged between 4.5 and 150 ng/g. The highest median PFOS concentrations have been observed in perches (median: 96 ng/g) and eels (77 ng/g), followed by pikes (37 ng/g), whitefish (34 ng/g), and roaches (6.1 ng/g). In contrast, in a food surveillance program only 11% of fishes at retail sale contained PFOS at detectable concentrations. One hundred five anglers (99 men, 6 women; 14-88 years old; median 50.6 years) participated in the human biomonitoring study. PFOS concentrations in blood plasma ranged from 1.1 to 650 μg/L (PFOA: 2.1-170 μg/L; PFHxS: 0.4-17 μg/L; LOD: 0.1 μg/L). A distinct dose-dependent relationship between fish consumption and internal exposure to PFOS was observed. PFOS concentrations in blood plasma of anglers consuming fish 2-3 times per month were 7 times higher compared to those without any fish consumption from Lake Möhne. The study results strongly suggest that human internal exposure to PFC is distinctly increased by consumption of fish from PFC-contaminated sites.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hygiene, Social and Environmental Medicine, MA 1/33, Ruhr-University Bochum , Universitätsstrasse 150, 44801 Bochum, Germany. juergen.hoelzer@rub.de
authors.forename: Jürgen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hölzer
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Göen
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Just
authors.forename: Rolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Reupert
authors.forename: Knut
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Rauchfuss
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kraft
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wilhelm
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017738:Alkanesulfonic Acids / Q000097:blood; D000818:Animals; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000032:analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005399:Fishes / Q000378:metabolism*; D005466:Fluorocarbons / Q000097:blood*; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D060106:Lakes; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D017738:Alkanesulfonic Acids; D060766:Drinking Water; D005466:Fluorocarbons; C076994:perfluorooctane sulfonic acid