PFAS levels in fish species in the Po River (Italy): New generation PFAS, fish ecological traits and parasitism in the foreground

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are resistant to breakdown and are now considered ubiquitous and concerning contaminants. Although scientific and legislative interest in these compounds has greatly increased in recent decades, our knowledge about their environmental fate and their effects...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Science of the total environment 2023-06, Vol.876, p.162828-162828, Article 162828
Main Authors: Giari, L., Guerranti, C., Perra, G., Cincinelli, A., Gavioli, A., Lanzoni, M., Castaldelli, G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acanthocephala
Alburnus alburnus
Alkanesulfonic Acids - analysis
Animals
Barbus barbus
Bioaccumulation
C6O4
Environmental Monitoring - methods
Fluorocarbons - analysis
Ictaluridae - metabolism
Ictalurus punctatus
Italy
Pomphorhynchus laevis (Acanthocephala)
Rivers - chemistry
Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis
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Summary:Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are resistant to breakdown and are now considered ubiquitous and concerning contaminants. Although scientific and legislative interest in these compounds has greatly increased in recent decades, our knowledge about their environmental fate and their effects on organisms is still incomplete, especially those of the new generation PFAS. In this study, we analysed the level of PFAS contamination in the fish fauna of the Po River, the most important waterway in Italy, to evaluate the influence of different factors (such as fish ecological traits and parasitism) on the accumulation of 17 PFAS. After solvent extraction and purification, hepatic or intestinal tissues from forty specimens of bleak, channel catfish, and barbel were analysed by liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LOQ = 2.5 ng/g w.w.). The prevalent PFAS were perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), present in all samples at the highest concentration (reaching a maximum of 126.4 ng/g and 114.4 ng/g in bleak and channel catfish, respectively), and long-chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFDA and PFUnDA). Perfluorooctanoic acid and new generation PFAS (Gen X and C6O4) were not detected. Comparison of the hepatic contamination between the benthic channel catfish and the pelagic bleak showed similar concentrations of PFOS (p > 0.05) but significantly higher concentrations of other individual PFAS and of the sum of all measured PFAS (p 
ISSN:0048-9697
1879-1026
DOI:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162828