Hepatic
Fatty Acid Profiles Associated with Exposure
to Emerging and Legacy Halogenated Contaminants in Two Harbor Seal
Populations across the North Atlantic
posted on 2022-01-24, 11:44authored byJiachen Sun, Long Zhang, Fengli Zhou, Susan Shaw, Anna Roos, Michelle Berger, Britt-Marie Bäcklin, Yichao Huang, Xiaoshi Zheng, Xiaodong Wang, Da Chen
Fatty
acids (FAs) have been extensively used as indicators of foraging
ecology in marine mammals, yet their association with exposure to
contaminants has rarely been investigated. The present study provided
the first characterization of the relationship between hepatic FA
profiles and exposure to a suite of contaminants in a sentinel speciesthe
harbor seal (Phoca vitulina)from
the Gulf of Maine and the south coast of Sweden. FA profiles differed
in the two seal populations, and the levels of legacy and alternative
brominated flame retardants and polyhalogenated carbazoles were significantly
elevated in Maine seals. Correlations between individual FAs and multiple
flame retardants (FRs) and poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs)
were found in seals from both populations. Moreover, several FR and
PFAS chemicals were significantly associated with the estimated desaturating
enzyme activity inferred from the FA profiles. The ratios of poly
to monounsaturated FAs (∑PUFAs/∑MUFAs) and those of
unsaturated to saturated FAs (∑UFAs/∑SFAs) were significantly
associated with HBBZ, PFHxS, or BDE 47 in seals from Maine and Sweden,
whereas ∑n – 6/∑n – 3 PUFAs was significantly associated with BDE 154 and 36-CCZ
in Swedish and Maine seals, respectively. Our results suggest the
lipid metabolism-disrupting potential of these contaminants in marine
mammals and warrant continuous biomonitoring and risk assessment,
considering the critical role of PUFAs in vital biological processes.