Quantification of total mercury in liver and heart tissue of Harbor Seals (Phoca vitulina) from Alaska USA
| Autor: | Jill Prewitt, Stephen K. O’Shea, Suzanne Conlon, Anne Hoover-Miller, Kady B. Marino |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2011 |
| Předmět: |
Male
Population chemistry.chemical_element Phoca Biochemistry Human health Animal science Dry weight Animals education General Environmental Science education.field_of_study biology Myocardium Age Factors Mercury Anatomy biology.organism_classification Mercury (element) Liver chemistry Bioaccumulation Heart tissues Harbor seal Female Alaska Water Pollutants Chemical |
| Zdroj: | Environmental Research. 111:1107-1115 |
| ISSN: | 0013-9351 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.envres.2011.07.010 |
| Popis: | This study quantified the Hg levels in the liver (n=98) and heart (n=43) tissues of Harbor Seals (Phoca vitulina) (n=102) harvested from Prince William Sound and Kodiak Island Alaska. Mercury tissue dry weight (dw) concentrations in the liver ranged from 1.7 to 393 ppm dw, and in the heart from 0.19 to 4.99 ppm dw. Results of this study indicate liver and heart tissues' Hg ppm dw concentrations significantly increase with age. Male Harbor Seals bioaccumulated Hg in both their liver and heart tissues at a significantly faster rate than females. The liver Hg bioaccumulation rates between the harvest locations Kodiak Island and Prince William Sound were not found to be significantly different. On adsorption Hg is transported throughout the Harbor Seal's body with the partition coefficient higher for the liver than the heart. No significant differences in the bio-distribution (liver:heart Hg ppm dw ratios (n=38)) values were found with respect to either age, sex or geographic harvest location. In this study the age at which Hg liver and heart bioaccumulation levels become significantly distinct in male and female Harbor Seals were identified through a Tukey's analysis. Of notably concern to human health was a male Harbor Seal's liver tissue harvested from Kodiak Island region. Mercury accumulation in this sample tissue was determined through a Q-test to be an outlier, having far higher Hg concentrarion (liver 392 Hg ppm dw) than the general population sampled. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|
Full Text from ScienceDirect