Polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins/ dibenzofurans and polybrominated diphenyl ethers in soil, vegetation, workshop-floor dust, and electronic shredder residue from an electronic waste recycling facility and in soils from a chemical industrial complex in eastern China.

The formation and release of polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PBDD/Fs) from the incineration of electronic wastes (e-waste) that contain brominated flame retardants (BFRs) are a concern. However, studies on the determination of PBDD/Fs in environmental samples collected from e-waste recycling facilities are scarce. In this study, 11 2,3,7,8-substituted PBDD/Fs and 10 polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners were determined in electronic shredder waste, workshop-floor dust soil, and leaves (of plants on the grounds of the facility) from a large-scale e-waste recycling facility and in surface soil from a chemical-industrial complex (comprising a coke-oven plant, a coal-fired power plant, and a chlor-alkali plant) as well as agricultural areas in eastern China.

Bioaccumulation of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in harbor seals from the northwest Atlantic.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were analyzed in blubber of harbor seals (Phoca vitulina concolor) collected between 1991 and 2005 along the northwest Atlantic. summation operatorPBDE concentrations (mono- to hexa-BDEs) detected in blubber samples (n=42) ranged from 80 to 25720 ng g(-1)lw, (overall mean 2403+/-5406 ng g(-1)lw). By age, mean summation operatorPBDE concentrations were: 3645+/-7388, 2945+/-5995, 1385+/-1265, and 326+/-193 ng g(-1)lw in pups, yearlings, adult males, and adult females, respectively.

Environmental exposure to PBDEs and thyroid function among New York anglers.

Experimental studies suggest that polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) can influence thyroid function, although the few human studies reported provide little support for this premise. Great Lakes sportfish anglers represent a population with potentially elevated dietary exposure to PBDEs due to the lipophilic nature of these compounds. Thirty-six licensed anglers who participated in the New York State Angler Cohort Study donated blood and completed questionnaires regarding demographic, clinical and sportfish consumption information.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers and polybrominated biphenyls in sediment and floodplain soils of the Saginaw River watershed, Michigan, USA.

Despite known historical release of polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs; brominated flame retardants) into the Pine River (St. Louis, MI, USA), a tributary of the Tittabawassee River which subsequently forms the Saginaw River and flows into Saginaw Bay-Lake Huron, little is known about spatial patterns of sediment contamination by PBBs in this watershed. In this study, concentrations of two groups of brominated flame retardants, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (summation PBDE; BDE-28, -47, -66, -100, -99, -85, -154, -153, -138, and -209) and PBBs were measured in more than 120 floodplain soil samples, surface sediment samples, and sediment cores collected in 2004 from the Shiawassee River, the Saginaw River, and Saginaw Bay, Michigan.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers and organochlorine pesticides in human breast milk from Massachusetts, USA.

Concentrations of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs; DDTs, HCHs, CHLs, and HCB) were measured in human breast milk samples collected across Massachusetts, USA, in 2004. Seventeen PBDE congeners were found in the samples, ranging in concentration from 0.06 to 1910 ng g(-1) lipid wt.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their hydroxylated metabolites in fish bile and sediments from coastal waters of Colombia.

Sediments and fish bile collected from the Atlantic coastal waters of Colombia were analyzed for 16 parent polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and 23 hydroxylated PAHs (OH-PAHs), respectively. Sediments contained overall mean SigmaPAH concentrations of 2090, 234 and 170 ng/g, dry wt, for Cartagena Bay, Caimanera Marsh, and Totumo Marsh, respectively. The mean concentration of the summed OH-PAHs in fish bile was 1250, 180 and 64.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers and polychlorinated biphenyls in a marine foodweb of coastal Florida.

Nine species of marine fish, including teleost fishes, sharks, and stingrays, and two species of marine mammals (dolphins) collected from Florida coastal waters were analyzed for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) to evaluate biomagnification factors (BMF) of these contaminants in a coastal foodweb. In addition, bottlenose dolphins and bull sharks collected from the Florida coast during the 1990s and the 2000s were analyzed for evaluation of temporal trends in PBDE and PCB levels in coastal ecosystems. Mean concentrations of PBDEs in muscle tissues of teleost fishes ranged from 8.