Abstract
The purpose of the study was to determine the concentration of bisphenol A (BPA), 4-tert-octylphenol (OP), and 4-nonylphenol (NP), in human hair, the fur of Baltic grey seals and the feathers of herring gulls. Hair was collected from 42 volunteers, while grey seal fur (n = 17) came from the seal centre in Hel (Marine Station of Institute of Oceanography, University of Gdansk) and gull covert feathers (n = 26) were collected from dead herring gulls along the Southern Baltic coast. Assays of phenol derivatives were conducted using the high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection technique. In human hair, the mean BPA concentration amounted to 411.2 ng g−1 dw, OP 131.2 ng g−1 dw, NP 4478.4 ng g−1 dw, in seal fur BPA 67.5 ng g−1 dw, OP 62.8 ng g−1 dw, NP 39.1 ng g−1 dw, and in feathers BPA 145.1 ng g−1 dw, OP 162.0 ng g−1 dw, NP 37.7 ng g−1 dw. The increase of the analysed EDCs in hair was significantly influenced by diet rich in products of marine origin, as well as hair colouring, heating up food in plastic containers, using home cleaning products without protective gloves and wearing newly purchased clothes without washing them first. The concentration of phenol derivatives in seal fur was influenced solely by the uniform diet rich in fish. In birds, the feeding area during molting significantly influenced the concentration of BPA, OP and NP found in covert feathers.
Highlights
The purpose of the study was to determine the concentration of bisphenol A (BPA), 4-tert-octylphenol (OP), and 4-nonylphenol (NP), in human hair, the fur of Baltic grey seals and the feathers of herring gulls
The lowest BPA concentrations were in seal fur (67.5 ng g-1 dw), whereas the highest were detected in human hair and were nearly six times higher of that measured in seal fur and three times higher than the concentration in gull feathers (145.1 ng g-1 dw)
BPA concentrations in covert feathers of a mature female collected in spring from Gdynia harbour were relatively higher than the concentration in feathers of Gull found during the end of summer and in winter at the fishing port of Władysławowo and at the Vistula estuary
Summary
The purpose of the study was to determine the concentration of bisphenol A (BPA), 4-tert-octylphenol (OP), and 4-nonylphenol (NP), in human hair, the fur of Baltic grey seals and the feathers of herring gulls. The mean BPA concentration amounted to 411.2 ng g-1 dw, OP 131.2 ng g-1 dw, NP 4478.4 ng g-1 dw, in seal fur BPA 67.5 ng g-1 dw, OP 62.8 ng g-1 dw, NP 39.1 ng g-1 dw, and in feathers BPA 145.1 ng g-1 dw, OP 162.0 ng g-1 dw, NP 37.7 ng g-1 dw. The concentration of phenol derivatives in seal fur was influenced solely by the uniform diet rich in fish. The feeding area during molting significantly influenced the concentration of BPA, OP and NP found in covert feathers. Xenobiotic elimination is achieved by incorporating toxic substances into feathers, claws, nails and hair, as well as removing them with excrement (Covaci and Schepens 2001; Kintz 2007; Schramm 2008)
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