title: Persistent organochlorines in 13 shark species from offshore and coastal waters of Korea: Species-specific accumulation and contributing factors.
abstract: Data on persistent organochlorines (OCs) in sharks are scarce. Concentrations of OCs such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) were determined in the muscle tissue of 13 shark species (n=105) collected from offshore (Indian and Pacific Oceans) and coastal waters of Korea, to investigate species-specific accumulation of OCs and to assess the potential health risks associated with consumption of shark meat. Overall OC concentrations were highly variable not only among species but also within the same species of shark. The concentrations of PCBs, DDTs, chlordanes, hexachlorobenzene, and heptachlor in all shark species ranged from <LOQ (limit of quantification) to 184 (mean: 35.0), <LOQ to 1135 (58.2), <LOQ to 56.2 (4.31), <LOQ to 18.8 (1.64) and <LOQ to 77.5 (1.37)ng/g lipid weight, respectively. The determined concentrations of PCBs and DDTs in shark in our study were relatively lower than those reported in other studies. Aggressive shark species and species inhabiting the Indian Ocean had the highest levels of OCs. Inter-species differences in the concentrations and accumulation profiles of OCs among shark species could be explained by differences in feeding habit and sampling locations. Several confounding factors such as growth velocity, trophic position, and regional contamination status may affect the bioaccumulation of OCs in sharks. Hazard ratios of non-cancer risk for all the OCs were below one, whereas the hazard ratios of lifetime cancer risks of PCBs and DDTs exceeded one, implying potential carcinogenic effects in the general population in Korea. This is the first report to document the occurrence of OCs in sharks from Korea.
authors.affiliation: Department of Marine Sciences and Convergent Technology, College of Science and Technology, Hanyang University, Ansan 426-791, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Hyun-Kyung
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Marine Sciences and Convergent Technology, College of Science and Technology, Hanyang University, Ansan 426-791, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Yunsun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.affiliation: Department of Marine Sciences and Convergent Technology, College of Science and Technology, Hanyang University, Ansan 426-791, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Sunggyu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Marine Sciences and Convergent Technology, College of Science and Technology, Hanyang University, Ansan 426-791, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Woochang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.affiliation: Korea Polar Research Institute, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Incheon 406-840, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Eun-Jung
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Choy
authors.affiliation: School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Gwangju 500-712, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Chang-Keun
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.affiliation: National Fisheries Research and Development Institute (NFRDI), Busan 619-705, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Won-Chan
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: National Fisheries Products Quality Management Service, Goyang 410-315, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Sang-Jo
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Marine Sciences and Convergent Technology, College of Science and Technology, Hanyang University, Ansan 426-791, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: hbmoon@hanyang.ac.kr.
authors.forename: Hyo-Bang
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Moon
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002706:Chlordan / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D006533:Heptachlor / Q000032:analysis; D006581:Hexachlorobenzene / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated / Q000032:analysis* / Q000633:toxicity; D019156:Indian Ocean; D007723:Korea; D008297:Male; D009132:Muscles / Q000737:chemistry; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology; D010140:Pacific Ocean; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000032:analysis; D018570:Risk Assessment; D017747:Seafood; D012754:Sharks / Q000378:metabolism*; D013045:Species Specificity; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis* / Q000633:toxicity
chemical_list: D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D002706:Chlordan; D006581:Hexachlorobenzene; D006533:Heptachlor; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls
keywords: Cancer risk; Inter-species difference; OCPs; Organochlorines; PCBs