Premium
Congener‐specific analysis of polychlorinated dibenzo‐ p ‐dioxins, dibenzofurans, and coplanar polychlorinated biphenyls in frogs and their habitats, Kitakyushu, Japan
Author(s) -
Kadokami Kiwao,
Takeishi Masayoshi,
Kuramoto Mitsuru,
Ono Yuiti
Publication year - 2002
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.5620210119
Subject(s) - congener , polychlorinated dibenzo p dioxins , polychlorinated dibenzofurans , bioaccumulation , environmental chemistry , polychlorinated dibenzodioxins , chemistry , persistent organic pollutant , ecotoxicology , ecology , contamination , biology
The occurrence and fates of polychlorinated dibenzo‐ p ‐dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), and coplanar polychlorinated biphenyls (coplanar PCBs) were investigated in two species of frog, mountain brown frog ( Rana ornativentris ) and Japanese brown frog ( Rana japonica ), and in soil samples. This study was carried out as part of an investigation aimed at determining the cause of extra forelimbs in the mountain brown frog. Frogs, not including malformed ones, and soil samples were collected at three sites in Kitakyushu, Japan, including the site where the malformed frogs were found and two reference sites. All samples were analyzed for PCDDs/PCDFs and coplanar PCBs. Relatively high concentrations of PCDDs/PCDFs and coplanar PCBs were detected in the soils and frogs collected from all three sites. Comparisons of concentrations in frogs and soils indicated that bioaccumulation of PCDDs/PCDFs was much lower than that of coplanar PCBs and that 2,3,7,8‐substituted PCDDs/PCDFs were more highly accumulated than non–2,3,7,8‐substituted isomers. From comparison of concentrations between the sexes, it was found that concentrations of dioxins, except for PCDDs, were significantly higher in males than in females. In the present study, relatively high concentrations of dioxins in frogs were found and maternal transfer to the eggs was strongly suspected. However, no difference in dioxin concentrations in frogs between the study site and the reference sites was found, so the cause of the malformations was not dioxins and remains unknown.