Comparing humic substance and protein compound effects on the bioaccumulation of perfluoroalkyl substances by Daphnia magna in water

Abstract

The influence of humic substances and protein compounds on the bioaccumulation of six types of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in Daphnia magna was compared. The humic substances included humic acid (HA) and fulvic acid (FA), the protein compounds included chicken egg albumin (albumin) and peptone, and the PFASs included perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), perfluorodecanoic acid, perfluoroundecanoic acid, and perfluorododecanoic acid. Four concentrations (0, 1, 10, and 20mgL−1) of the four dissolved organic matter (DOM) types were investigated. At the 1mgL−1 level, HA and albumin enhanced all tested PFAS bioaccumulation, whereas FA and peptone only enhanced the bioaccumulation of shorter-chain PFASs (PFOS, PFOA, and PFNA). However, all four DOM types decreased all tested PFAS bioaccumulation at the 20mgL−1 level, and the decreasing ratios of bioaccumulation factors caused by FA, HA, albumin, and peptone were 1–49%, 23–77%, 17–58%, and 8–56%, respectively compared with those without DOM. This is because DOM not only reduced the bioavailable concentrations and uptake rates of PFASs but also lowered the elimination rates of PFASs in D. magna, and these opposite effects would change with different DOM types and concentrations. Although the partition coefficients (Lkg−1) of PFASs between HA and water (104.21–104.98) were much lower than those between albumin and water (104.92–105.86), their effects on PFAS bioaccumulation were comparable. This study suggests that although PFASs are a type of proteinophilic compounds, humic substances also have important effects on their bioavailability and bioaccumulation in aquatic organisms.