title: Risk assessment for human consumption of perfluorinated compound-contaminated freshwater and marine fish from Hong Kong and Xiamen.
abstract: Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) are man-made fluoro-surfactants that are identified as global pollutants and can pose health risks to humans and wildlife. Two aspects of risk assessment were conducted in this study, including exposure and response. Exposure was estimated by using the concentrations of PFCs in fish and applying standard exposure factors. Among different PFCs, PFOS, PFOA, PFNA, PFDA, PFUdA and PFTrDA were detected. Total concentrations of PFC in fish ranged from 0.27-8.4 ng g(-1) to 0.37-8.7 ng g(-1) respectively in Hong Kong and Xiamen. The calculated hazard ratio (HR) of PFOS for all fish was less than 1.0. However, the HR for mandarin fish in Hong Kong and bighead carp, grass carp and tilapia in Xiamen, had HR values of approximately 0.5, indicating that frequent consumption of these 4 more contaminated fish species might pose an unacceptable risk to human health. Our data support the notion that the released/disposed chemical pollutants into water systems make fish a source of environmental toxicants to humans. The risks and potential effects of PFCs to health of coastal population in the Pearl River Delta are of concern.
authors.affiliation: Croucher Institute of Environmental Sciences, Department of Biology, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, PR China.
authors.forename: Yin G
authors.initials: YG
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Hin T
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Wan
authors.forename: Alice Y S
authors.initials: AY
authors.lastname: Law
authors.forename: Xi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Ye Q
authors.initials: YQ
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Giesy
authors.forename: Ming H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Chris K C
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Wong
mesh_terms: D017738:Alkanesulfonic Acids / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity; D000818:Animals; D059001:Aquatic Organisms; D002347:Carps; D005399:Fishes; D005466:Fluorocarbons / Q000032:analysis* / Q000633:toxicity; D005506:Food Contamination; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000737:chemistry*; D006723:Hong Kong; D006801:Humans; D018570:Risk Assessment; D017210:Tilapia; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D017738:Alkanesulfonic Acids; D005466:Fluorocarbons; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C076994:perfluorooctane sulfonic acid