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Bioaccumulation and metabolism of benzo[ A ]pyrene in three species of polychaete worms
Author(s) -
Driscoll Susan Kane,
McElroy Anne E.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
environmental toxicology and chemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1552-8618
pISSN - 0730-7268
DOI - 10.1002/etc.5620150820
Subject(s) - bioaccumulation , polychaete , pyrene , benzo(a)pyrene , environmental chemistry , metabolism , sediment , biology , chemistry , ecology , biochemistry , paleontology , astrobiology
Polychaete worms which inhabit and ingest contaminated sediments may be exposed to a suite of sediment‐sorbed xenobiotics, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) such as benzo[ a ]pyrene (B a P). This study compared the accumulation and metabolism of sediment‐sorbed B a P among various populations of polychaetes, including Leitoscoloplos fragilis, Nereis diversicolor , and Scolecolepides (= Marenzellaria) viridis . After exposure to trace amounts of B a P in sediment, N. diversicolor and S. viridis were found to metabolize B a P extensively, but metabolism of B a P appeared to be much slower in L. fragilis . Within each species, no consistent, significant differences in extent of B a P metabolism were observed between worms collected from contaminated versus reference sites. This result suggests that metabolism of B a P was not induced in worms from contaminated sites. To examine the extent to which metabolism of B a P is inducible in these species, worms were exposed in the lab to 3‐methylcholanthrene (3MC), a potent inducer of PAH metabolism in other species. Only one species, S. viridis , showed a small increase in the percent of total tissue B a P that was biotransformed after treatment with 3MC. Whether or not worms were treated with 3MC, biota‐sediment accumulation factors (lipid‐ and organic carbon‐normalized tissue to sediment ratios) were highest for L. fragilis.