Bioconcentration and tissue distribution of perfluorinated acids in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

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Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were exposed simultaneously to a homologous series of perfluoroalkyl carboxylates and sulfonates in a flow-through system to determine compound-specific tissue distribution and bioconcentration parameters for perfluorinated acids (PFAs). In general, PFAs accumulated to the greatest extent in blood > kidney > liver > gall bladder. Carboxylates and sulfonates with perfluoroalkyl chain lengths shorter than seven and six carbons, respectively, could not be detected in most tissues and were considered to have insignificant bioconcentration factors (BCFs). For detectable PFAs, carcass BCFs increased with increasing length of the perfluoroalkyl chain, ranging from 4.0 to 23,000, based on wet weight concentrations. Carboxylate carcass BCFs increased by a factor of eight for each additional carbon in the perfluoroalkyl chain between 8 and 12 carbons, but this relationship deviated from linearity for the longest PFA tested, possibly because of decreased gill permeability. In general, half-lives (3.9-28 d) and uptake rates (0.053-1.700 L/kg/d) also increased with increasing length of the perfluoroalkyl chain in all tissues. Sulfonates had greater BCFs, half-lives, and rates of uptake than the corresponding carboxylate of equal perfluoroalkyl chain length, indicating that hydrophobicity, as predicted by the critical micelle concentration, is not the only determinant of PFA bioaccumulation potential and that the acid function must be considered.