Addison, R.F. and P.F. Brodie (1973). Occurrence of DDT residues in Beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the Mackenzie Delta, N.W.T. Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada 30(11): 1733-1736.
Descriptors: Canada, DDT, residues, Beluga whales, Mackenzie Delta, Delphinapterus leucas.
Aguilar, A. (1985). Compartmentation and reliability of sampling procedures in organochlorine pollution surveys of cetaceans. Residue Reviews 95: 91-114.
Descriptors: insecticides, Cetacea, organochlorine compounds, methods, agricultural chemicals, mammals, organic compounds, organic halogen compounds, pesticides, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Aguilar, A. (1983). Organochlorine pollution in sperm whales, Physeter macrocephalus, from the temperate waters of the Eastern North Atlantic. Marine Pollution Bulletin 14(9): 349-352. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: Atlantic Ocean, pollution, organochlorine, sperm whales, Physeter macrocephalus.
Aguilar, A. and A. Borrell (2005). DDT and PCB reduction in the western Mediterranean from 1987 to 2002, as shown by levels in striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba). Marine Environmental Research 59(4): 391-404. ISSN: 0141-1136.
Abstract: Temporal trends in DDT and PCB contamination were recorded in the offshore waters of the western Mediterranean Sea during 1987-2002 using striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) as indicators. Despite the fact that the use of DDT and PCB was banned at the end of the 1970s-early 1980s, dolphins were still found to carry moderate to high levels of these chemicals in their tissues, reflecting their ubiquity and environmental persistence. Concentrations of both groups of compounds have slowly decreased, although the decline in PCB has been steeper than that of DDT. Consequently, the tDDT/PCB ratio increased significantly. Indices of metabolisation of both DDT and PCB substantiated progressive aging of pollutant loads and degradation, suggesting that the offshore marine environment has not been exposed to significant releases of these contaminants in recent years. This all indicates a decline in organochlorine pollution in oceanic waters which is consistent, albeit not always, with trends observed in coastal surveys. Dolphins and other top predators are thus confirmed as useful indicators to assess long-term trends of pollutants in oceanic ecosystems and large water masses.
Descriptors: DDT analysis, dolphins, environmental pollutants analysis, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis, water pollutants, chemical analysis, adipose tissue, ddt pharmacokinetics, environmental monitoring, environmental pollutants pharmacokinetics, Mediterranean region, polychlorinated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, tissue distribution, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics.
Aguilar, A. and A. Borrell (1994). Reproductive transfer and variation of body load of organochlorine pollutants with age in fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus). Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 27(4): 546-554. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: metabolites, polychlorinated biphenyls, pollutants, whales, adipose tissues, age, sex, side effects, animal morphology, animal tissues, aromatic compounds, Cetacea, connective tissues, halogenated hydrocarbons, mammals, organic halogen compounds, toxicity, blubber, ddt, body fat, concentration, age differences, sex differences, nontarget organisms, nontarget effects.
Aguilar, A. and A. Borrell (1994). Abnormally high polychlorinated biphenyl levels in striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) affected by the 1990-1992 Mediterranean epizootic. Science of the Total Environment 154(2-3): 237-247. ISSN: 0048-9697.
NAL Call Number: RA565.S365
Descriptors: digestive system, ingestion and assimilation, infection, marine ecology, ecology, environmental sciences, metabolism, pollution assessment control and management, skeletal system, movement and support, toxicology, blubber, distemper, lipid, liver, mortality, pollution.
Alne, J.I. (1995). Fluor i beinvevet hos vagehval. [Fluorine in the bone tissue of minke whales]. Norsk Veterinaertidsskrift 107(12): 1135-1138. ISSN: 0332-5741.
NAL Call Number: 41.8 N81
Descriptors: pollution, marine areas, marine mammals, fluorine, bones, whales, Cetacea, Balaenopteridae.
Alzieu, C., R. Duguy, and P. Babin (1982). France: Pathologie des Delphinidae: contamination foetale et neo-natale par les PCB [polychlorobiphenyles] lesions cutanees ulceratives [Mediterranee, composes organochlores, intoxication, dauphins, marsouins, littoral francais. [Delphinidae pathology: fetal and neonatal contamination by PCB's [polychlorobiphenyls], cutaneous ulcerative lesions [Mediterranean sea, organochlorine compounds, pollutants, dolphins, porpoises, littoral zone]. Revue Des Travaux De L'Institut Des Peches Maritimes 46(2): 157-166. ISSN: 0035-2276.
Descriptors: pathology, Delphinidae, fetal, neonatal, contamination, PCB's, Mediterranean, dolphins, porpoises, pollutants.
Language of Text: French and English summaries.
Amiard Triquet, C. and F. Caurant (1994). Les formes physico-chimiques de stockage des metaux chez les organismes marins. [Physico-chemical forms of metal accumulation in marine organisms]. Analusis 22(1): M24-M26. ISSN: 0365-4877.
NAL Call Number: QD71.A52
Descriptors: pollution, heavy metals, marine environment, toxicity, fauna, metabolism, metalloproteins, mollusca, dolphins, aquatic environment, biota, Cetacea, elements, environments, mammals, metallic elements, proteins.
Language of Text: French summary.
Ancora, S., R. Rossi, P.D. Simplicio, L. Lusini, and C. Leonzio (2002). In vitro study of methylmercury in blood of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 42(3): 348-53. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Abstract: The biochemical behavior of methylmercury (MeHg) in dolphin blood was investigated in vitro. MeHg distribution between plasma and erythrocytes and its release from erythrocytes into plasma or medium without SH group was determined. At the subcellular level its distribution among different thiol-containing molecules was also investigated in erythrocytes and plasma. When blood was treated with 0.1 mM MeHg, about 98.1% was found in red cells and 1.9% in plasma; only 0.6% of MeHg present in the cellular compartment was bound to membranes.Hemoglobin (Hb) and albumin, principal proteins containing SH groups (PSH), and glutathione (GSH) appeared to be the main targets of MeHg in dolphin blood. Gel filtration of stroma-free hemolysate of treated red blood cells (RBCs) revealed that MeHg was almost equally present in high (52.5%) and low (47.5%) molecular weight fractions, whereas in plasma it only eluted with proteins (high molecular weight fractions). Hemoglobin was identified as the main intracellular protein binding MeHg. The exchange reaction of MeHg between GSH and dolphin hemoglobin was also evaluated and the equilibrium constants calculated.
Descriptors: dolphins, environmental exposure, methylmercury compounds blood, water pollutants, chemical blood, binding sites, erythrocytes chemistry, hemoglobins analysis, methylmercury compounds adverse effects, plasma chemistry, serum albumin analysis, water pollutants, chemical adverse effects.
Andre, J.M. (1997). Problematic and methodological approach of the study of the bioaccumulation of trace elements in Delphinids. Bulletin De La Societe Royale Des Sciences De Liege 66(1-3): 39-50. ISSN: 0037-9565.
Abstract: Because of their position at the end of the trophic network, their long life span, and their specificity of mammals adapted to marine life, Delphinids are considered as a particularly interesting biological material for ecotoxicological studies. However, confronted with many restrictions basically associated with sampling difficulties due to economic, technical and legal reasons, many authors have only published occasional studies on dolphin's contamination by trace elements. Thus, amongst the previous works published in this field, only a few of them had enough samples and biological and ecological information at their disposal, to enable them to conduct a thorough study supported by a statistical approach. Nevertheless, the collection of a "suitable" sample is far from being the only difficulty met in this field of research. As with many ecotoxicological approaches "in situ" the study of the bioaccumulation of trace elements is confronted with the following problems 1. the number and complexity of the influence of environmental factors, 2. the lack of knowledge concerning the biology and physiology of the studied organisms, 3. the uncertainty surrounding the physico-chemical behaviour of the elements analyzed. Despite a strong scientific interest, the weakness of the methodological approach of many works in this field currently affects their credibility. The continuation or even the development of this type of research depends on our capacity to define coherent objectives which will open the door for a solid scientific prospective making necessary the establishment of a common method of approach. We propose some points of reflection on this topic. Faced with this problematic and being based on a particularly large sample of specimens, an example of a method of approach and procedure of data analysis is proposed. This allows us to go beyond the simple establishment of the contamination levels to reveal and quantify the actions of the different factors taken into account. As an example, the results concerning the influence of the geographical localization on the determinism of the bioaccumulation of mercury will be developed.
Descriptors: stenella, marine environment, toxicology, trace elements, mercury, zinc, selenium, cadmium, bioaccumulation, food chains, aquatic environment, Cetacea, contamination, dolphins, ecosystems, elements, environment, heavy metals, mammals, metallic elements, semimetals.
Language of Text: English summary.
Angell, C.M., J.Y. Wilson, M.J. Moore, and J.J. Stegeman (2004). Cytochrome p450 1a1 expression in cetacean integument: implications for detecting contaminant exposure and effects. Marine Mammal Science 20(3): 554-566. ISSN: 0824-0469.
NAL Call Number: QL713.2.M372
Abstract: Contaminant related health risks to marine mammals are typically inferred from the levels of contaminants measured in blubber. Such measurements alone are insufficient to indicate the likelihood of biological effects from contaminant exposure, especially for contaminants that do not bioaccumulate. Cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) in mammals is induced by, and involved in, the metabolism of planar halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, chemicals of concern in aquatic systems. CYP1A induction is a molecular response to exposure to these inducers in many vertebrates. Using immunohistochemistry, we semiquantitatively measured CYP1A1 expression in integument (epidermis and blubber) collected by biopsy or at necropsy from 17 species of cetaceans. CYP1A1 expression was detected in all species and, in some cases, varied both within and between species. CYP1A1 expression in mysticetes was comparable to that in odontocetes. Assessing how the differences in contaminant burdens, life history parameters, and physiological condition between individuals, populations, or species affect CYP1A1 expression in cetacean integument is essential to the interpretation of this induction as a biomarker of exposure to and effects of contaminants. Detection of CYP1A1 expression in integument samples offers a relatively simple, non-lethal technique to study biological changes associated with contaminant exposure in cetaceans.
Descriptors: enzymology, biochemistry and molecular biophysics, pollution assessment control and management, population studies, toxicology, biopsy, clinical techniques, necropsy, clinical techniques, contaminant exposure, health risks, life history.
Antoine, N., I. Jansegers, J.M. Bouquegneau, L. Holsbeek, and C. Joiris (1992). Contamination par les metaux lourds des oiseaux marins et des marsouins de la mer du Nord. [Heavy metal contamination of seabirds and porpoises in the North Sea]. Bulletin De La Societe Royale Des Sciences De Liege 61(1-2): 163-176. ISSN: 0037-9565.
Abstract: In the North Sea, the contamination level of cadmium in porpoises, zinc and copper in seabirds, and mercury in both appear to be very high. The other studied metal (Cr, Ti, Fe, Pb) concentrations are comparable to literature. Seabirds and porpoises are located at top of the food chains, however their use as bioindicators of the contamination level of the ecosystem they are feeding on remains debatable. Actually many differences appear in both the contamination level and the storage and detoxification mechanisms from a species to another.
Descriptors: porpoises, waterfowl, heavy metals, food chains, bioaccumulation, contamination, North Sea, Atlantic Ocean, Cetacea, contamination, Eastern Atlantic, ecosystems, elements, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, North Atlantic, Northeast Atlantic.
Language of Text: English summary.
Anupma, K., R.K. Sinha, G. Krishna, and L. Swarn (2002). Concentration of organochlorines in Ganges River dolphins from Patna, Bihar. Journal of Environmental Biology 23(3): 279-281. ISSN: 0254-8704.
NAL Call Number: SH540.J65
Descriptors: aldrin, animal tissues, DDT, endosulfan, HCH, insecticide residues, insecticides, pollutants, polluted water, rivers, water pollution, water quality, dolphins, India, Ganges River.
Aono, S., S. Tanabe, Y. Fujise, H. Kato, and R. Tatsukawa (1997). Persistent organochlorines in minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) and their prey species from the Antarctic and the North Pacific. Environmental Pollution 98(1): 81-89. ISSN: 0269-7491 .
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: whales, ddt, organochlorine compounds, chlordane, hch, fats, water pollution, indicator organisms, Antarctica, Pacific Ocean, agricultural chemicals, Cetacea, mammals, marine areas, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, polar regions, pollution, Balaenoptera acutorostrata, balaenopteridae, hexachlorobenzene, biological indicators.
Arai, T., T. Ikemoto, A. Hokura, Y. Terada, T. Kunito, S. Tanabe, and I. Nakai (2004). Chemical forms of mercury and cadmium accumulated in marine mammals and seabirds as determined by XAFS analysis. Environmental Science and Technology 38(24): 6468-6474. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Marine mammals and seabirds tend to exhibit high accumulations of mercury, cadmium, and selenium in their livers and kidneys. In this study, chemical forms of mercury, cadmium, and selenium accumulated in the livers and kidneys of northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus), Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus),and black-footed albatross (Diomedea nigripes) were studied by extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy to reveal the detoxification mechanisms of these metals. It was found that mercury and selenium exist in the form of HgSe in the liver of northern fur seal. Mercury levels were found to be higher than those of Se, based on their molar ratio, in black-footed albatross. XAFS analysis disclosed an existence of chalcogenide containing both Hg-Se and the Hg-S bonds, suggesting the existence of a solid solution Hg(Se, S) as granules in black-footed albatross. In contrast, Cd concentrations in the kidney were higher than those in the liver for northern fur seal, black-footed albatross, and Risso's dolphin. It was found that Cd was bound to sulfur, which was probably derived from the metallothionein, The Cd-O bond was observed in the tissues of northern fur seal.
Descriptors: Diomedea nigripes, Callorhinus ursinus, Grampus griseus, pollutants, cadmium and mercury accumulation, liver and kidney, chemical forms accumulated, liver, kidney.
Arima, S. and K. Nagakura (1979). Mercury and selenium content of Odontoceti [whales and porpoises]. Bulletin of the Japanese Society of Scientific Fisheries 45(5): 623-626. ISSN: 0021-5392.
NAL Call Number: 414.9 J274
Descriptors: whales, porpoises, odontoceti, mercury, selenium, content.
Language of Text: English summary.
Augier, H., L. Benkoel, A. Chamlian, W.K. Park, and C. Ronneau (1993). Mercury, zinc and selenium bioaccumulation in tissues and organs of Mediterranean striped dolphins Stenella coeruleoalba meyen. Toxicological result of their interaction. Cellular and Molecular Biology 39(6): 621-34. ISSN: 0145-5680.
NAL Call Number: QH573.C4558
Abstract: Neutron activation analysis of 13 Mediterranean striped dolphins Stenella coeruleoalba showed high mercury and selenium contaminations of main tissues and organs of these cetaceans. The mercuric contents were excessive, particularly in liver (from 68 to 2272 micrograms/g dry wt. basis), then in kidney, lung, muscle, heart and brain. The selenium concentrations were also high in liver (from 45 to 1320 micrograms/g dry wt. basis), then in kidney, lung, muscle, skin and heart. The main way of contamination seems to be the food through trophic network, but skin and lung are also able to play a part which must be elucidated. The average Hg/Se ratios in liver and kidney were respectively 1.82 and 1.59. Linear relationship between mercury and selenium concentrations in tissues and organs, particularly in liver and kidney, were confirmed. The mercury and selenium interaction on a toxicological point of view was established by a statistical approach; in the same way, intervention of zinc, metallothioneins and glutathiones have been discussed.
Descriptors: dolphins metabolism, mercury pharmacokinetics, selenium pharmacokinetics, zinc pharmacokinetics, absorption, diet, drug interactions, glutathione physiology, intestinal absorption, lung metabolism, Mediterranean Sea, mercury toxicity, metallothionein physiology, neutron activation analysis, selenium toxicity, skin metabolism, tissue distribution, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, zinc toxicity.
Beck, H., E.M. Breuer, A. Dross, and W. Mathar (1990). Residues of PCDDs, PCDFs, PCBs and other organochlorine compounds in harbour seals and harbour porpoise. Chemosphere 20(7-9): 1027-1034. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: porpoises, residues, sea pollution, trials, gas chromatography, adipose tissues, organochlorine compounds, biphenyl, dolphins, seals, analytical methods, animal morphology, animal tissues, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, carnivora, Cetacea, chromatography, connective tissues, experiments, hydrocarbons, mammals, organic halogen compounds, Pinnipedia, pollution, water pollution.
Beck, K.M., P. Fair, W. McFee, and D. Wolf (1997). Heavy metals in livers of bottlenose dolphins stranded along the South Carolina coast. Marine Pollution Bulletin 34(9): 734-739. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: heavy metals, South Carolina, dolphins, water pollution, wild animals, toxicology, liver, America, body parts, Cetacea, digestive system, dolphins, elements, mammals, metallic elements, North America, pollution, south eastern states, southern states, USA, wildlife, Tursiops truncatus.
Becker, P.R., E.A. Mackey, R. Demiralp, M.M. Schantz, B.J. Koster, and S.A. Wise (1997). Concentrations of chlorinated hydrocarbons and trace elements in marine mammal tissues archived in the U.S. National biomonitoring specimen bank. Chemosphere 34(9/10): 2067-2098. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: side effects, pesticides, residues, organochlorine compounds, seals, Phocoena, lagenorhynchus, Delphinapterus leucas, whales, ddt, carnivora, Cetacea, delphinapterus, dolphins, mammals, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, Pinnipedia, whales, nontarget effects, phoca, phocidae, Callorhinus ursinus, Phoca hispida, Phoca largha, Erignathus barbatus, Globicephala melas, Phocoena Phocoena, Lagenorhynchus autus, Balaena mysticetus.
Notes: Meeting Information: Biological Environmental Specimen Banking. Second International Symposium and Workshop, Stockholm, Sweden, May 20-23, 1996.
Beineke, A., U. Siebert, M. McLachlan, R. Bruhn, K. Thron, K. Failing, G. Muller, and W. Baumgartner (2005). Investigations of the potential influence of environmental contaminants on the thymus and spleen of harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena). Environmental Science and Technology 39(11): 3933-3938. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Harbor porpoises from the German North and Baltic Seas exhibit a higher incidence of bacterial infections compared to whales from less polluted arctic waters. The potential adverse effect of environmental contaminants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and heavy metals on the immune system and the health status of marine mammals is still discussed controversially. The aim of the present study was to investigate the possible influence of PCB, polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE), toxaphene, (p,p'-dichlorodiphenyl)trichlorethane (DDT), and (p,p'-dichlorodiphenyl)dichlorethene (DDE) on the immune system of harbor porpoises. Lymphoid organs are influenced by a variety of factors, and therefore special emphasis was given to separating the confounding effect of age, health status, nutritional state, geographical location, and sex from the effect of contaminant levels upon thymus and spleen. Contaminant analysis and detailed pathological examinations were conducted on 61 by-caught and stranded whales from the North and Baltic Seas and Icelandic and Norwegian waters. Stranded harbor porpoises were more severely diseased than by-caught animals. Thymic atrophy and splenic depletion were significantly correlated to increased PCB and PBDE levels. However, lymphoid depletion was also associated with emaciation and an impaired health status. The present report supports the hypothesis of a contaminant-induced immunosuppression, possibly contributing to disease susceptibility in harbor porpoises. However, further studies are needed to determine if lymphoid depletion is primarily contaminant-induced or secondary to disease and emaciation in this cetacean species.
Descriptors: harbor porpoise, Baltic Sea, thymus, spleen, environmental contaminants, polychlorinated biphenyls, immunosuppression.
Beland, P. (1996). Les belugas du Saint-Laurent. [St. Lawrence beluga whales]. Pour La Science (225): 56-63. ISSN: 0153-4092.
Descriptors: whales, mortality, hunting, water pollution, estuaries, St. Lawrence River, Cetacea, international inland waters, mammals, North American inland waters, physiographic features, pollution.
Belang, P., S. Deguise, and D. Martineau (1995). Pollution: menaces sur le Beluga du Saint-Laurent (Quebec, Canada). Pollution et destruction: trois siecles de menaces sur les belugas. [Pollution: jeopardy to the Saint Lawrence beluga whale. Pollution and destruction: three centuries of threats on the belugas]. Cahiers D'Ethologie Fondamentale Et Appliquee, Animale Et Humaine (Belgium) 14(4): 323-334. ISSN: 0778-7103.
Descriptors: Quebec, Delphinapterus leucas, toxic substances, organochlorine compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls, aromatic hydrocarbons, pathology, population dynamics, survival, life tables, postmortem examination, estuaries, America, aromatic compounds, biological analysis, Canada, Cetacea, delphinapterus, halogenated hydrocarbons, histocytological analysis, hydrocarbons, mammals, North America, organic halogen compounds, physiographic features, population dynamics, vital statistics, whales.
Bennett, E.R., P.S. Ross, and R.J. Letcher (2002). Halogenated phenolic contaminants and metabolites in the blood of killer whale (Orcinus orca). Organohalogen Compounds 58: 81-84. ISSN: 1026-4892.
Descriptors: Orcinus orca, pollutants, blood, chemical pollution, chemical factors, halogenated phenolic contaminants and metabolites.
Bennett, P.M., P.D. Jepson, R.J. Law, B.R. Jones, T. Kuiken, J.R. Baker, E. Rogan, and J.K. Kirkwood (2001). Exposure to heavy metals and infectious disease mortality in harbour porpoises from England and Wales. Environmental Pollution 112(1): 33-40. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: diseases, heavy metals, metals, mortality, toxic substances, toxicology, trauma, water pollution, Phocoena.
Berge, J.A., E.M. Brevik, A. Bjorge, N. Folsvik, G.W. Gabrielsen, and H. Wolkers (2004). Organotins in marine mammals and seabirds from Norwegian territory. Journal of Environmental Monitoring 6(2): 108-112. ISSN: 1464-0325.
Abstract: An increasing number of studies indicate that marine mammals and some seabirds are exposed to organotins. However, results from northern and Arctic areas are few. Here results from analysis of tributyltin (TBT), dibutyltin (DBT), monobutyltin (MBT), triphenyltin (TPhT), diphenyltin (DPhT) and monophenyltin (MPhT) in harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), common seal (Phoca vitulina), ringed seal (Phoca hispida) and glaucous gull (Larus hyperboreus) from Norwegian territory are presented. Relatively high concentrations of DBT, TBT and MBT were observed in muscle, kidney and liver from harbour porpoises caught in northern Norway in 1988, just before restrictions on the use of tributyltin (TBT) (mainly on small boats) were introduced in several European countries. The concentrations in harbour porpoise muscle tissue were reduced significantly 11 years later, possibly as a result of the introduced restrictions. Considerably lower concentrations of butyltins were observed in the seals compared to porpoises. The lowest levels of organotins were found in ringed seals from Spitsbergen, where only traces of dibutyltin (DBT) and monobutyltin (MBT) were observed. Traces of DBT and MBT were also found in some individual glaucous gulls from Bear Island. The sum of the degradation products MBT and DBT in liver samples from all analysed species were generally higher than TBT itself. Triphenyltin (TPhT) was observed in all porpoise samples arid in livers of common seals. Also the sum of the degradation products MPhT and DPhT in liver samples from porpoise and common seals were higher than TPhT. No traces of phenyltins were found in ringed seals from Spitsbergen or in glaucous gulls from Bear Island. The limited data available indicate low to moderate exposure to organotins in northern areas (Spitsbergen and Bear Island). Marine mammals are however more exposed further south along the Norwegian Coast.
Descriptors: Larus hyperboreus, Phoca hispida, Phoca vitulina Phocoena phocoena, pollutants, content, chemical pollution, chemical factors, organotins, Norway, organotin pollutant content.
Berrow, S.D., B. McHugh, D. Glynn, E. McGovern, K.M. Parsons, R.W. Baird, and S.K. Hooker (2002). Organochlorine concentrations in resident bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in the Shannon estuary, Ireland. Marine Pollution Bulletin 44(11): 1296-1302. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: animal behavior, nontarget effects, organochlorine pesticides, pesticide residues, polluted water, polychlorinated biphenyls, water pollution, dolphins, Tursiops truncatus.
Boer, J. de, P.G. Wester, E.H.G. Evers, and U.A.T. Brinkman (1996). Determination of tris(4-chlorophenyl)methanol and tris(4-chlorophenyl)methane in fish, marine mammals and sediment. Environmental Pollution 93(1): 39-47.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: sediment, pollution, dyes, pesticides, seals, Cetacea, gadiformes, anguilla genus, modiolus, cod, dolphins, mussels, eels, North Sea, residues, aquatic animals, mammals, aquatic mammals, fish, anguilloidei, animal products, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic organisms, Atlantic Ocean, bivalvia, bony fishes, carnivora, Cetacea, diadromous fishes, Eastern Atlantic, fishery products, fishes, mammals, marine areas, mollusca, North Atlantic, northeast Atlantic, Pinnipedia, saltwater fishes, shellfish, otariidae, phocidae, phocoenidae, delphinidae, gadidae, marine mammals.
Boon, J.P., H.M. Sleiderink, M.S. Helle, M. Dekker, A. van Schanke, E. Roex, M.T.J. Hillebrand, H.J.C. Klamer, B. Govers, D. Pastor, D. Morse, P.G. Wester, and J. de Boer (1998). The use of a microsomal in vitro assay to study phase I biotransformation of chlorobornanes (toxaphene) in marine mammals and birds. Possible consequences of biotransformation for bioaccumulation and genotoxicity. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. C, Pharmacology, Toxicology and Endocrinology 121(1-3): 385-403.
Descriptors: camphechlor, insecticides, side effects, aquatic animals, seals, physeter, experimentation, metabolism, agricultural chemicals, aquatic organisms, Carnivora, Cetacea, mammals, pesticides, Pinnipedia, whales, nontarget effects, marine animals, Phoca vitulina, Lagenorhynchus albirostris, Physeter catodon, Diomedea immutabilis, assays.
Notes: Forms and functions of cytochrome P450.
Booth, S. and D. Zeller (2005). Mercury, food webs, and marine mammals: implications of diet and climate change for human health. Environmental Health Perspectives 113(5): 521-526. ISSN: 0091-6765.
Abstract: We modeled the flow of methyl mercury, a toxic global pollutant, in the Faroe Islands marine ecosystem and compared average human methyl mercury exposure from consumption of pilot whale meat and fish (cod, Gadus morhua) with current tolerable weekly intake (TWI) levels. Under present conditions and climate change scenarios, methyl mercury increased in the ecosystem, translating into increased human exposure over time. However, we saw greater changes as a result of changing fishing mortalities. A large portion of the general human population exceed the TWI levels set by the World Health Organization [WHO; 1.6 microg/kg body weight (bw)], and they all exceed the reference dose (RfD) of 0.1 microg/kg bw/day set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA; equivalent to a TWI of 0.7 microg/kg bw). As a result of an independent study documenting that Faroese children exposed prenatally to methyl mercury had reduced cognitive abilities, pregnant women have decreased their intake of whale meat and were below the TWI levels set by the WHO and the U.S. EPA. Cod had approximately 95% lower methyl mercury concentrations than did pilot whale. Thus, the high and harmful levels of methyl mercury in the diet of Faroe Islanders are driven by whale meat consumption, and the increasing impact of climate change is likely to exacerbate this situation. Significantly, base inflow rates of mercury into the environment would need to be reduced by approximately 50% to ensure levels of intake below the WHO TWI levels, given current levels of whale consumption.
Descriptors: food webs, marine mammals, mercury, diet, global pollutant, human health, Faroe Islanders, whale meat.
Borrell, A. and A. Aguilar (2005). Differences in DDT and PCB residues between common and striped dolphins from the southwestern Mediterranean. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 48(4): 501-8. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Abstract: Organochlorine concentrations (OCs) and stable isotopes were investigated in the blubber of common dolphins (Delphinus delphis) and striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) from the southwestern Mediterranean. Samples were obtained from dolphins entangled in fishing nets during the 1992-1994 fishing season and from biopsies taken in 1992. Intrapopulation variations were studied, but because most of the dolphins were juveniles or calves (90%), no significant differences were found on the basis of reproductive condition or sex. Only mature male common dolphins showed significantly higher levels of most of the compounds studied than immature individuals did. There were quantitative and qualitative interspecific differences in organochlorine compounds profile. As compared to common dolphins, striped dolphins carried higher concentrations of organochlorine concentrations (OCs), their %DDE/tDDT and PCB/tDDT ratios were significantly higher, and recalcitrant PCB congeners were more abundant. Distribution and information on composition of stomach contents would in principle support a higher exposure to OCs in common dolphins as compared to striped dolphins, thus apparently contradicting the observed results. However, stable isotopes showed that striped dolphins exploit a higher trophic level, thus explaining observed differences. Interspecific dissimilarities in metabolic capacity to handle OCs may be an added factor. Although in the two species OC concentrations exceeded levels considered to be ineffective in marine mammals, pollution-induced effects on populations could not be properly assessed.
Descriptors: ddt analysis, dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethylene analysis, dolphins metabolism, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis, water pollutants, chemical analysis, adipose tissue chemistry, adipose tissue metabolism, ddt metabolism, dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethylene metabolism, environmental monitoring, Mediterranean Sea, polychlorinated biphenyls metabolism, principal component analysis, species specificity, water pollutants, chemical metabolism.
Borrell, A., A. Aguilar, G. Cantos, C. Lockyer, M.P. Heide Jorgensen, and J. Jensen (2004). Organochlorine residues in harbour porpoises from Southwest Greenland. Environmental Pollution 128(3): 381-391. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: DDT, feeding habits, hexachlorobenzene, organochlorine compounds, pesticide residues, pollutants, polychlorinated biphenyls, Phocoena, harbour porpoise, Greenland.
Borrell, A., A. Agular, S. Corsolini, and S. Focardi (1996). Evaluation of toxicity and sex-related variation of PCB levels in Mediterranean striped dolphins affected by an epizootic. Chemosphere 32(12): 2359-2369.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: evaluation, toxicity, dolphins, polychlorinated biphenyls, morbillivirus, water pollution, stenella, biphenyl, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, Cetacea, dolphins, hydrocarbons, mammals, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, paramyxoviridae, pollution, viruses, Stenella coeruleoalba.
Borrell, A., D. Bloch, and G. Desportes (1995). Age trends and reproductive transfer of organochlorine compounds in long-finned pilot whales from the Faroe Islands. Environmental Pollution 88(3): 283-292. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: whales, ddt, polychlorinated biphenyls, metabolites, pollutants, concentration, body fat, lactation, age differences, water pollution, nontarget organisms, nontarget effects, Faroe Islands, blubber.
Borrell, A., G. Cantos, T. Pastor, and A. Aguilar (2004). Levels of organochlorine compounds in spotted dolphins from the Coiba archipelago, Panama. Chemosphere 54(5): 669-677. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: Blubber and skin samples from 63 spotted dolphins (Stenella attenuata) (18 males, 40 females and 5 of unknown sex) were collected by biopsy techniques in the waters of the Coiba archipelago. Blubber was analyzed for organochlorine compounds and skin for gender determination. Mean levels of HCB (hexachlorobenzene), tPCB (polychlorinated biphenyls) and tDDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) were 0.064, 2.30 and 6.4 mg kg-1, respectively. These levels are low and are not considered to represent a threat to the S. attenuata population. No significant differences either in concentrations of HCB, tPCB and tDDT or in PCB profiles were observed between males and females. The ratio tDDT/tPCB was 2.69, indicating predominantly agrarian versus industrial activities in the area. The ratio ppDDE/tDDT was 0.83, a high figure that suggests both a local reduction of DDT inputs and a high rate of DDT degradation. Significant quantitative and qualitative differences were observed between two schools, suggesting intra-population heterogeneity in organochlorine exposure possibly due to demographic segregation.
Descriptors: Stenella attenuata, pollutants, dermis, blubber, chemical pollution, chemical factors, North Pacific, Panama, Ciba National Park, organochlorine compounds, levels in blubber.
Bouquegneau, J.M., V. Debacker, S. Gobert, and J.P. Nellissen (1997). Toxicological investigations on four sperm whales stranded on the Belgian coast: inorganic contaminants. Bulletin De L' Institut Royal Des Sciences Naturelles De Belgique Biologie (Belgium). Bulletin Van Het Koninlijk Belgisch Instituut Voor Natuurwetenschappen - Biologie 67(Suppl.): 133. ISSN: 0374-6429.
NAL Call Number: QH301.I48
Abstract: Nine heavy metals have been analysed in the liver, muscle and kidneys of sperm whales that stranded on the Belgian coast, November 18, 1994. The concentrations of most of the studied inorganic contaminants except mercury and cadmium - were low. The mercury content of the tissues was high, but in the range of those found in sperm whales previously described in the literature, as shown by Joiris et al. (this volume), and most of the mercury was found under an inorganic form. We found a close correlation between the mercury and selenium contents of the livers, which strongly suggests that the pollutant was detoxified under the tiemannite form, and therefore was not potentially toxic for the animals. On the contrary, cadmium was found in high concentrations, which was expectable owing to the normal diet of the species (cephalopods), but twice those previously described in the literature for sperm whales. Moreover, the metal was not found, as it is generally the case, to be bound to metallothioneins (a protein well known for its protective effect against heavy metals toxicity) and therefore may have contributed to the debilitation of the animals.
Descriptors: Physeter, beaches, postmortem examination, heavy metals, detoxification, liver, North Sea, Atlantic Ocean, biological analysis, body parts, Cetacea, digestive system, eastern Atlantic, elements, histocytological analysis, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, North Atlantic, northeast Atlantic, physiographic features, processing, whales.
Language of Text: English and French summaries.
Notes: Meeting Information: Proceedings of the Symposium "The North Sea Sperm Whales, One Year After" Held in Koksijde (Belgium) on the Anniversary of the Stranding of Four Sperm Whales on the Belgian Coast, Koksijde Belgium, Nov. 16-18, 1995.
Brousseau, P., S. de Guise, I. Voccia, S. Ruby and M. Fournier (2003). Immune status of St. Lawrence Estuary beluga whales. In: J.G. Vos, G.D. Bossart, M. Fournier and T.J. O'Shea (Editors), Toxicology of Marine Mammals. New Perspectives: Toxicology and the Environment, Taylor & Francis: London & New York, p. 381-403. ISBN: 0415239141.
NAL Call Number: QL713.2.T685 2003
Descriptors: Delphinapterus leucas, immune response, chemical pollution, chemical factors, north west Atlantic, Canada, Quebec, St. Lawrence Estuary, overview, possible effects of environmental contaminants.
Bruhn, R., N. Kannan, G. Petrick, D.E. Schulz Bull, and J.C. Duinker (1995). CB pattern in the harbour porpoise: bioaccumulation, metabolism and evidence for cytochrome P450 IIB activity. Chemosphere 31(7): 3721-32. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: Metabolism of chlorobiphenyls (CBs) was studied in harbour porpoise by comparing patterns of CB-X/CB-153 ratios in blood, brain, liver and blubber with the patterns in herring, the main food source. The CBs were classified in five groups, based on the presence/absence of vicinal H-atoms (vic. Hs) in meta,para (m,p) and/or ortho,meta (o,m) positions and the number of ortho-Cl-atoms (ortho-Cls). Plots of CB-X/CB-153 ratios in porpoise tissue vs the ratios in herring appeared to be linear for each CB group in all tissues. Slopes of these plots (metabolic slopes) were used as quantitative indicators of metabolic activity. In this way, activity of PB-type isozymes of the P450 monooxygenase system was apparent: in contrast to existing literature data, harbour porpoise appears to be able to metabolize congeners with m,p vic. Hs, even in the presence of more than 2 ortho-Cls. The presence of 3-MC-type (MC-type) isozymes was also detected. The metabolic slopes were also used as basis for risk assessment. Due to their metabolism the most toxic non-ortho CBs were not present in the tissues at detectable levels. We suggest a risk assessment approach which takes this into account. It is considered to be an alternative and more reliable basis for risk assessment than the use of toxic equivalent factors. The results support the model of equilibrium distribution of CBs in harbour porpoise and the role of blood as central transport medium. The model has been developed for persistent compounds; it appears to hold for metabolizable CB congeners as well.
Descriptors: aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylases, cytochrome p 450 enzyme system metabolism, environmental pollutants metabolism, polychlorinated biphenyls metabolism, steroid hydroxylases metabolism, adipose tissue enzymology, adipose tissue metabolism, brain chemistry drug effects, cytochrome p 450 enzyme system blood, dolphins, environmental pollutants blood, enzyme activation drug effects, liver enzymology, liver metabolism, polychlorinated biphenyls blood, risk assessment, steroid hydroxylases blood.
Bustamante, P., C. Garrigue, L. Breau, F. Caurant, W. Dabin, J. Greaves, and R. Dodemont (2003). Trace elements in two odontocete species (Kogia breviceps and Globicephala macrorhynchus) stranded in New Caledonia (South Pacific). Environmental Pollution 124(2): 263-71. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Abstract: Liver, muscle and blubber tissues of two short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) and two pygmy sperm whales(Kogia breviceps) stranded on the coast of New Caledonia have been analysed for 12 trace elements (Al, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu. Fe, organic and total Hg, Mn, Ni, Se, V, and Zn). Liver was shown to be the most important accumulating organ for Cd, Cu, Fe, Hg, Se, and Zn in both species, G. macrorhynchus having the highest Cd, Hg, Se and Zn levels. In this species, concentrations of total Hg are particularly elevated, reaching up to 1452 microg g(-1) dry wt. Only a very low percentage of the total Hg was organic. In both species,the levels of Hg are directly related to Se in liver. Thus, a molar ratio of Hg:Se close to 1.0 was found for all specimens, except for the youngest K. breviceps. Our results suggest that G. macrorhynchus have a physiology promoting the accumulation of high levels of naturally occurring toxic elements. Furthermore, concentrations of Ni, Cr and Co are close to or below the detection limit in the liver and muscles of all specimens. This suggests that mining activity in New Caledonia, which typically elevates the levels of these contaminants in the marine environment, does not seem to be a significant source of contamination for these pelagic marine mammals.
Descriptors: dolphins metabolism, environmental pollutants analysis, trace elements analysis, whales metabolism, adipose tissue chemistry, food chain, liver chemistry, muscles chemistry, New Caledonia.
Cardellicchio, N. (1995). Persistent contaminants in dolphins: an indication of chemical pollution in the Mediterranean Sea. Water Science and Technology 32(9/10): 331-340.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1P7
Descriptors: dolphins, Mediterranean Sea, metals, pesticides, residues, stenella, pollutants, water pollution, aquatic animals, mammals, aquatic mammals, indicator organisms, polychlorinated biphenyls, mercury, selenium, cadmium, lead, heavy metals, insecticides, organochlorine compounds, ddt, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic organisms, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, Cetacea, dolphins, elements, heavy metals, hydrocarbons, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, pollution, semimetals, Stenella coeruleoalba, contaminants, marine mammals, biological indicators.
Cardellicchio, N., A. Decataldo, A. Leo di, and S. Giandomenico (2002). Trace elements in organs and tissues of striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) from the Mediterranean sea (Southern Italy). Chemosphere 49(1): 85-90. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: cadmium, chromium, copper, heavy metals, iron, kidneys, lead, liver, mortality, organs, poisoning, pollutants, tin, tissue distribution, toxicity, trace elements, wild animals, zinc, dolphins, Stenella coeruleoalba.
Carvalho, M.L., R.A. Pereira, and J. Brito (2002). Heavy metals in soft tissues of Tursiops truncatus and Delphinus delphis from west Atlantic Ocean by X-ray spectrometry. Science of the Total Environment 292(3): 247-54. ISSN: 0048-9697.
Abstract: In this work, the concentration of heavy metals in muscle, liver, fat tissue and skin is studied in 15 Delphinus delphis and two Tursiops truncatus dolphins, stranded along the Portuguese coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Sample collection was performed post-mortem and the tissues were kept frozen until analysed. Sample preparation included lyophilising and grounding in a Teflon mill to avoid contamination by metals. The obtained powder was prepared as pellets for each sample and analysed directly by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. The concentrations of K, Ca, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Br, Rb, Sr, Hg and Pb were obtained. Significant differences between the muscle, the skin and the fat tissues were detected. Cobalt concentrations were similar in liver, skin and muscle. The levels of Ni, Rb and Sr are at the level of the detection limit and whenever measurable are rather constant in all the analysed tissues. The results show that the highest concentrations of Mn, Cu and Hg are always in liver tissues. Zinc and Se concentrations are higher in skin and Pb is present in very low concentrations in all the analysed tissues except in skin; Fe and As are enhanced in muscle and liver. In general, the two studied species did not seem to differ significantly in their heavy metals concentration in a given tissue.
Descriptors: dolphins metabolism, metals, heavy analysis, water pollutants, chemical analysis, adipose tissue chemistry, Atlantic Ocean, environmental monitoring, liver chemistry, muscles chemistry, Portugal, skin chemistry, species specificity, spectrum analysis, tissue distribution, x rays.
Carvan III, M.J. and D.L. Busbee (2003). Mechanism of aromatic hydrocarbon toxicity: implications for cetacean morbidity and mortality. In: J.G. Vos, G.D. Bossart, M. Fournier and T.J. O'Shea (Editors), Toxicology of Marine Mammals. New Perspectives: Toxicology and the Environment, Taylor & Francis: London & New York, p. 429-457. ISBN: 0415239141.
NAL Call Number: QL713.2.T685 2003
Descriptors: Cetacea, literature review, pollutants, chemical pollution, metabolic and physiological effects, review, chemical factors, aromatic hydrocarbons.
Carvan III, M.J., L.P. Flood, B.D. Campbell, and D.L. Busbee (1995). Effects of benzo(a)pyrene and tetrachlorodibenzo-(p)-dioxin on fetal dolphin kidney cells: inhibition of proliferation and initiation of DNA damage. Chemosphere 30(1): 187-198. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: Dolphin kidney cells (CDK) were exposed in vitro to benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) in the presence or absence of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo(p)dioxin (TCDD), a cytochrome P450-inducing agent, and/or a-naphthoflavone (alpha-NF), an inhibitor of cytochrome P450 induction. BaP inhibited mitosis in CDK cells in a dose-dependent manner. TCDD, while inhibiting cell proliferation, did not show a strict dose-dependent mode of action. BaP inhibition of mitosis was decreased by alpha NF, which also decreased the inhibitory effects of TCDD on CDK proliferation. BaP treatment initiated both 3H-thymidine incorporation and the increased alkali lability of DNA functions of the initiation of excision repair. Cells pre-treated with TCDD and then exposed to BaP exhibited increased BaP-DNA adduct levels and increased DNA excision repair. These data indicate that dolphin cells metabolized BaP in vitro as a function of cytochrome P450-associated activities, that BaP metabolites covalently bound to cellular DNA and initiated excision repair. Inhibition of the cytochrome P450-mediated metabolism of BaP decreased the BaP-associated inhibition of mitosis in dolphin cells.
Descriptors: development, enzymology, biochemistry and molecular biophysics, marine ecology, ecology, environmental sciences, pollution assessment control and management, toxicology, urinary system, chemical coordination and homeostasis, alpha naphthoflavone, cytochrome p450, DNA adducts.
Chou, C.C., Y.N. Chen, and C.S. Li (2004). Congener-specific polychlorinated biphenyls in cetaceans from Taiwan waters. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 47(4): 551-560. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, polychlorinated biphenyls, toxic substances, Cetacea, dolphins.
Ciesielski, T., A. Wasik, I. Kuklik, K. Skora, J. Namiesnik, and P. Szefer (2004). Organotin compounds in the liver tissue of marine mammals from the Polish coast of the Baltic Sea. Environmental Science and Technology 38(5): 1415-20. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Butyltins (BTs) and phenyltins (PhTs) were determined in the livers of marine mammals found by-caught or stranded along the Polish coast of the Baltic Sea. During the investigation an original analytical method was developed. Butyltin compounds were detected in all the liver samples, whereas phenyltins were not detected in any of the samples. The total concentrations of BTs ranged from 43.9 to 7698 ng(Sn) x g(-1) dry weight. Age-related trends to accumulate BTs in immature porpoises were found. At the same time there were no male-female differences in BTs concentrations observed. No statistically significant spatial distribution differences were found between the locations corresponding to the open Baltic Sea waters and inside the Gulf of Gdansk, which is characterized by high maritime activity. In comparison to butyltin levels in marine mammals from other geographic regions, the samples analyzed indicate a significant degree of tributyltin pollution along the Polish coast of the Baltic Sea. On the basis of a literature review, higher BT levels are usually found in waters close to highly industrialized areas, such as Japan, Hong Kong, and the United States.
Descriptors: dolphins, organotin compounds pharmacokinetics, porpoises, seals, earless, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, age factors, environmental monitoring, geography, liver chemistry, organotin compounds analysis, Poland, water pollutants, chemical analysis.
Clarke, S.C., A.P. Jackson, and J. Neff (2000). Development of a risk assessment methodology for evaluating potential impacts associated with contaminated mud disposal in the marine environment. Chemosphere 41(1-2): 69-76. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: In order to assess impacts associated with disposal of contaminated mud arising from Hong Kong's dredging and reclamation projects, a methodology has been formulated to determine the level of risk posed by consumption of seafood/marine prey species to humans and to the Chinese White Dolphin (Sousa chinensis). This methodology improves on previously used techniques by incorporating risks for organic contaminants, accounting for doses from sources other than seafood, and incorporating additional local knowledge on Sousa chinensis behaviour. It thus represents an advance in risk assessment techniques and a new integration of risk assessment and monitoring in environmental management.
Descriptors: dolphins, environmental monitoring methods, refuse disposal, seafood, food contamination, organic chemicals, public health, risk assessment.
Colborn, T. and M.J. Smolen (1996). Epidemiological analysis of persistent organochlorine contaminants in cetaceans. Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 146: 91-172. ISSN: 0179-5953.
NAL Call Number: TX501.R48
Abstract: Information is provided to test the hypothesis that organochlorines introduced into the environment since the early 1940s could threaten the reproductive potential of baleen whales and other cetaceans. Comparisons are made using data on the role of organochlorines in a model system, the Great Lakes region of North America, and in model animals, including humans, pinnipeds, and other wildlife. DDT and PCB are used as model organochlorines with the caveat that there may be thousands of other chemicals in the environment also involved. Improved sensitivity in analytical quantification of synthetic chemicals in biological tissue has been accompanied by an increase in knowledge about biochemical processes that control development and function. The effects described in this review are the result of disrupted gene expression, not damage to the gene. The mechanisms of action of the organochlorines reveal their ability to affect developing organisms at very low concentrations during critical life stages: embryonic, fetal, and early postnatal. Exposure during early development can disrupt the organization of the endocrine, reproductive, immune and nervous systems, effecting irreversible damage that may not be expressed until the individuals reach adulthood. The recent discovery that human sperm count is declining worldwide at a rate of 1 x 10(6) sperm/(mL.yr) suggests common exposure to estrogen-like chemicals during prenatal and early postnatal development. This raises concern for other top predator species that also share the same exposure. Periods of intense feeding followed by long periods of fasting are common among species of baleen whales. This unique strategy places the embryonic and nursing calves in vulnerable positions, because under both situations maternal blood levels are elevated as a result of absorption from food intake or as a result of mobilization as fat is metabolized. Estimates of Toxic Equivalents (TEQs) based on the occurrence of four PCB congeners (118, 183, 153, 180) in sigma PCB reported in whales are highest for St. Lawrence belugas and Faroe Island long-finned pilot whales. This conservative approach reveals that some whale species are within the range of enzyme-induced TEQs at which effects have been associated with adverse health effects in other aquatic species. The epidemiological approach was used for analysis because it was developed to handle multiple exposure scenarios in which direct causal links are virtually impossible to isolate. The analysis includes the tenets of timeorder, strength of association, specificity of cause and effect, consistency, coherence, and predictive performance.
Descriptors: Cetacea metabolism, environmental health, hydrocarbons, chlorinated, insecticides metabolism, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, body burden.
Colborn, T. and M.J. Smolen (2003). Cetaceans and contaminants. In: J.G. Vos, G.D. Bossart, M. Fournier and T.J. O'Shea (Editors), Toxicology of Marine Mammals. New Perspectives: Toxicology and the Environment, Taylor & Francis: London & New York, p. 291-332. ISBN: 0415239141.
NAL Call Number: QL713.2.T685 2003
Descriptors: Cetacea, pollutants, contaminant concentrations and effects, overview, chemical pollution, chemical factors.
Crane, K., J. Galasso, C. Brown, G. Cherkashov, G. Ivanov, V. Petrova, and B. Vanstayan (2001). Northern ocean inventories of organochlorine and heavy metal contamination. Marine Pollution Bulletin 43(1-6): 28-60. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: geologic sediments analysis, hydrocarbons, chlorinated analysis, metals, heavy analysis, seawater chemistry, water pollutants, chemical analysis, water pollution, chemical analysis, arctic regions, climate, oceans and seas, seasons, whales metabolism.
Das, K., V. Jacob, and J.M. Bouquegneau (2002). White-sided dolphin metallothioneins: purification, characterisation and potential role. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. C, Toxicology and Pharmacology 131(3): 245-251. ISSN: 1532-0456.
NAL Call Number: QP901.C6
Descriptors: cadmium, mercury, metallothionein, toxicity, toxicology, Lagenorhynchus, characterisation, purification.
Das, K., U. Siebert, M. Fontaine, T. Jauniaux, L. Holsbeek, and J.M. Bouquegneau (2004). Ecological and pathological factors related to trace metal concentrations in harbour porpoises Phocoena phocoena from the North Sea and adjacent areas. Marine Ecology Progress Series 281: 283-295. ISSN: 0171-8630.
NAL Call Number: QH541.5.S3M32
Abstract: There is growing concern about the health status of the harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena in the North Sea and adjacent areas. The interaction between toxicological results (Zn, Cd, Cu, Fe, Se, Hg), stable isotope data ([delta]13C and [delta]15N) and the most common pathological findings, namely emaciation and lesions of the respiratory system, were investigated in 132 porpoises collected along the coasts of northern France, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Iceland and Norway between 1994 and 2001. The body condition of harbour porpoises stranded on the French, Belgian and German coasts was poor compared to that of by-catch individuals from Iceland and Norway, as reflected by blubber thickness and hepatic to total body-mass ratio. High Zn and Hg concentrations were observed in some porpoises collected along the southern North Sea coast compared to by-catch individuals from Iceland, Norway and the Baltic Sea. Increasing Zn levels were observed with deteriorating health condition (emaciation and bronchopneumonia), while Hg increases were not significant. The increases were not related to shrinking liver mass which remained unchanged. These observations indicate a general redistribution of trace metals within the organs (muscles and blubber to liver), as a result of protein and lipid catabolism. Muscle [delta]13C and [delta]15N values remained unchanged with deteriorating body condition. Cd concentrations were associated only with age and low [delta]15N values, indicating that high Cd concentrations in Iceland and Norway porpoises may be partly diet-related, i.e. a result of Cd contaminated prey.
Descriptors: Phocoena phocoena, inorganic substances, stable isotope levels, pollutants, diseases and disorders, metal pollution, metals, heavy metal levels, North Sea, heavy metal and stable isotope levels, ecological and pathological implications.
De Luna, C.J. and L. Rosales Hoz (2004). Heavy metals in tissues of gray whales Eschrichtius robustus, and in sediments of Ojo de Liebre Lagoon in Mexico. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 72(3): 460-466. ISSN: 0007-4861.
NAL Call Number: RA1270.P35A1
Descriptors: Eschrichtius robustus pollutants, heavy metals content, tissues, musculature, muscles, bone, skin, kidney, lagoon habitat, metal pollution, heavy metal pollution, metals, heavy metals, north Pacific, Mexico, Baja California, Ojo de Liebre Lagoon, tissue heavy metal content, sediment heavy metal content relations.
Duinker, J.C. and M.T.J. Hillebrand (1979). Mobilization of organochlorines from female lipid tissue and transplacental transfer to fetus in a harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in a contaminated area. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 23(6): 728-732. ISSN: 0007-4861.
NAL Call Number: RA1270.P35A1
Descriptors: harbour porpoise, fetus, organochlorines, transplacental, tranfer, lipid tissue.
Echarri, I., C. Nerin, D.E. Wells, C. Domeno, and J. Cacho (1998). Multivariate analysis applied to the study of the distribution of chlorobiphenyls (CBs), including the non-ortho-CBs, in fish and sea mammals. Analyst 123(3): 421-427.
NAL Call Number: 382 AN1
Descriptors: aquatic animals, mammals, statistical methods, fish, chromatography, limanda, seals, Tursiops, Cetacea, pollution, toxicology, pleuronectoidei, biphenyl, analytical methods, animal products, aquatic organisms, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, bony fishes, carnivora, Cetacea, dolphins, fishery products, fishes, hydrocarbons, mammals, methods, Pinnipedia, pleuronectoidei, marine mammals, principal component analysis, multivariate analysis, chlorobiphenyls, Phoceana phoceana, Limanda limanda, Phoca vitulina, Tursiops truncatus, phocoenidae, pleuronectidae, phocidae, odontoceti.
Endo, T., K. Haraguchi, F. Cipriano, M.P. Simmonds, Y. Hotta, and M. Sakata (2004). Contamination by mercury and cadmium in the cetacean products from Japanese market. Chemosphere 54(11): 1653-1662. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: mercury, cadmium, contamination, Cetacean, markets, Japan.
Endo, T., K. Haraguchi, and M. Sakata (2003). Renal toxicity in rats after oral administration of mercury-contaminated boiled whale livers marketed for human consumption. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 44(3): 412-416. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: whales, livers as food, mercury, food contamination, nephrotoxicity, human food chain.
Evans, K., M. Hindell, and G. Hince (2004). Concentrations of organochlorines in sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) from Southern Australian waters. Marine Pollution Bulletin 48(5-6): 486-503. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Abstract: Concentrations of DDTs, PCBs and HCHs were measured in sperm whales involved in two mass stranding events on the west coast of Tasmania, Australia in February 1998. DDTs and PCBs were present in all samples analysed, while only three contained HCHs. The relationships between organochlorines, sex, age and reproductive groups were marked by high variability. Differences in organochlorine concentrations were observed between animals from the two stranding sites and discussed in light of the ecology of this species. Concentrations of all pollutants were stratified throughout the vertical aspect of the blubber and possible reasons for and the implications of this are discussed. Concentrations of compounds were higher than those documented in this species in the Southern Hemisphere previously, although were relatively lower than those documented in the Northern Hemisphere. However, comparisons were confounded by spatial and temporal differences. Continued monitoring of marine mammals throughout this region in a co-coordinated, standardized manner is essential for establishing definite temporal and spatial variations in pollutant concentrations.
Descriptors: Physeter macrocephalus, pollutants, chemical pollution, chemical factors, south Pacific, Australia, Tasmania, organochlorine concentrations.
Foreid, S., T. Rundberget, T. Severinsen, O. Wiig, and J.U. Skaare (2000). Determination of toxaphenes in fish and marine mammals. Chemosphere 41(4): 521-528. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: camphechlor, insecticide residues, congeners, Gadus morhua, phoca, Thalarctos maritimus, balaenopteridae, whales, body fat, gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, detectors, sex differences, Arctic Ocean, chlorinated bornanes, Phoca hispida, Balaenoptera acutostrata, Orcinus orca, electron capture detectors.
Notes: In the special section: Toxaphene edited by M. Oehma.
Fossi, M.C., L. Marsili, G. Neri, S. Casini, G. Bearzi, E. Politi, M. Zanardelli, and S. Panigada (2000). Skin biopsy of Mediterranean cetaceans for the investigation of interspecies susceptibility to xenobiotic contaminants. Marine Environmental Research 50(1-5): 517-21. ISSN: 0141-1136.
NAL Call Number: QH545.W3M36
Abstract: Various studies on Mediterranean cetaceans have revealed bioaccumulation of contaminants such as organochlorines (OCs) and heavy metals. The susceptibility of these animals to organic pollutants and the relationship between bioaccumulation and population decline (as in the case of Delphinus delphis) are unexplored fields. In this study, we used a non-destructive approach (skin biopsy) to explore OC bioaccumulation processes and mixed-function oxidase activity (BPMO) in four species of cetaceans: striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba), bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), common dolphin (D. delphis) and fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus). Significant differences in BPMO induction and OC levels were found between odontocetes and mysticetes, the former having mixed-function oxidase activities four times higher than the latter, binding with levels of OCs one order of magnitude higher in odontocetes. A significant correlation (P < 0.05) between BPMO activities and OC levels was found in B. physalus. In an ongoing project, fibroblast cultures have been used as an alternative in vitro method of evaluating interspecies susceptibility to contaminants such as OCs and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These results suggest that cetacean skin biopsies are a powerful non-invasive tool for assessing ecotoxicological risk to Mediterranean marine mammals species.
Descriptors: dolphins metabolism, environmental monitoring methods, skin pathology, water pollutants, chemical toxicity, biopsy, cells, cultured, hydrocarbons, chlorinated, insecticides pharmacokinetics, Mediterranean region, metals pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics.
Fossi, M.C., L. Marsili, and G.N. Di Sciara (2003). The role of skin biopsy in the detection of exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals in Mediterranean cetaceans. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 5(1): 55-60. ISSN: 1561-0713.
Descriptors: Balaenoptera physalus, Delphinus delphis, Stenella coeruleoalba, Tursiops truncatus, diagnostic techniques, skin biopsy, pollutants, endocrine disrupting chemicals, non lethal detection by skin biopsy, Mediterranean Sea, Ionian Sea and western Ligurian Sea, non lethal pollutant detection by skin biopsy.
Fossi, M.C., L. Marsili, G. Lauriano, C. Fortuna, S. Canese, S. Ancora, C. Leonzio, T. Romeo, R. Merino, E. Abad, and B. Jimenez (2004). Assessment of toxicological status of a SW Mediterranean segment population of striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) using skin biopsy. Marine Environmental Research 58(2-5): 269-274. ISSN: 0141-1136.
Abstract: Various studies have revealed high concentrations of contaminants such as organochlorines (OCs) and heavy metals in Mediterranean cetaceans. A geographical trend of contamination (PCBs and DDTs) has been found for striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba). In this study we used a non-lethal approach (skin biopsy) to investigate bioaccumulation of OCs, including polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs), DDTs, polychlorodibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorodibenzofurans (PCDFs), trace elements (Hg, Cd, Pb) and CYP1A activity (BPMO) in nine striped dolphins sampled in the Aeolian area (Sicily û Italy) in summer 2002. The arithmetic mean value of BPMO activity in this group was 43.46 AUF/g tissue/h. This value is approximately 3 times and 5 times lower, respectively, than the value found in the Ionian and in the Ligurian groups. Skin biopsies of striped dolphins emerged as a suitable material for assessing the toxicological status of the various Mediterranean groups.
Descriptors: Stenella coeruleoalba, diagnostic techniques, skin biopsy, pollutants, skin, chemical pollution, Mediterranean Sea, south west, toxicological status assessment, skin biopsy evaluation.
Fossi, M.C., L. Marsili, G. Neri, A. Natoli, E. Politi, and S. Panigada (2003). The use of a non-lethal tool for evaluating toxicological hazard of organochlorine contaminants in Mediterranean cetaceans: new data 10 years after the first paper published in mpb. Marine Pollution Bulletin 46(8): 972-982. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: environmental sciences, pollution assessment, control and management, toxicology, skin biopsy, applied and field techniques, non lethal tool, toxicological risk, cetaceans, Mediterranean.
Frodello, J.P. and B. Marchand (2001). Cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc in five toothed whale species of the Mediterranean Sea. International Journal of Toxicology 20(6): 339-43. ISSN: 1091-5818.
NAL Call Number: RA1190.J61
Abstract: The cadmium, lead, copper, and zinc levels were measured in six organs (lung, liver, kidney, skin, muscle, and bone) from 18 specimens of toothed whales, belonging to five species, found stranded along the Corsican coast between November 1993 and December 1998. The five species examined were the bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus, the common dolphin Delphinus delphis, the striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba, the pilot whale Globicephala melas, and the Risso's dolphin Grampus griseus. The values obtained demonstrate that there is a great variability in the accumulation of toxic metals. A comparison of the values with those obtained in other geographical regions also demonstrates an extensive variability in metal levels. The presence of metals in the stomach contents of three of the individuals studied shows that the food source is responsible for a significant input of pollutants to the whales. Measured pollutant levels in whales are thus the result of an accumulation occurring throughout the animal's life.
Descriptors: cadmium pharmacokinetics, copper pharmacokinetics, dolphins metabolism, lead pharmacokinetics, whales metabolism, zinc pharmacokinetics, gastrointestinal contents chemistry, Mediterranean Sea, organ specificity, species specificity, tissue distribution, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics.
Frodello, J.P., D. Viale, and B. Marchand (2002). Metal concentrations in the milk and tissues of a nursing Tursiops truncatus female. Marine Pollution Bulletin 44(6): 551-4. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Abstract: Metal concentrations measured in the organs of beached whales are published regularly. Few of these, however, describe metal levels in nursing females. In the present study, mercury, lead, copper and zinc levels were measured in the milk and tissues of a female Bottlenose dolphin. Results reveal that metal pollutants pass from the tissue into the milk.
Descriptors: copper analysis, dolphins physiology, lactation, lead analysis, milk chemistry, water pollutants analysis, zinc analysis, copper pharmacokinetics, environmental exposure, lead pharmacokinetics, reference values, tissue distribution, zinc pharmacokinetics.
Fromberg, A., M. Cleemann, and L. Carlsen (1999). Review on persistent organic pollutants in the environment of Greenland and Faroe Islands. Chemosphere 38(13): 3075-3093. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: insecticide residues, organochlorine insecticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, residues, body fat, man, marine fishes, whales, seals, wild birds, Odobenus rosmarus, phocoenidae, shellfish, literature reviews, Greenland, Faroe Islands.
Gallien, I., F. Caurant, M. Bordes, P. Bustamante, P. Miramand, B. Fernandez, N. Quellard, and P. Babin (2001). Cadmium-containing granules in kidney tissue of the Atlantic white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhyncus acutus) off the Faroe Islands. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. C, Toxicology and Pharmacology 130(3): 389-95. ISSN: 1532-0456.
NAL Call Number: QP901.C6
Abstract: Top predators from the northern sub-polar and polar areas exhibit high cadmium concentrations in their tissues. In the aim to reveal possible adverse effects, samples of five Atlantic white-sided dolphins Lagenorhyncus acutus have been collected on the occasion of the drive fishery in the Faroe Islands, for ultrastructural investigations and energy dispersive X-ray microanalyses. Cadmium concentrations were less than the limit of detection in both immature individuals and ranged from 22.7 to 31.1 microg x g(-1) wet weight in the mature individuals. Two individuals with the highest cadmium concentrations exhibited electron dense mineral concretions in the basal membranes of the proximal tubules. They are spherocrystals made up of numerous strata mineral deposit of calcium and phosphorus together with cadmium. Cadmium has been detected with a molar ratio of Ca:Cd of 10:1 in the middle of these concretions. To our knowledge, this is the first report of such granules in a wild vertebrate. The role of these granules in the detoxification of the metal and the possible pathological effects are considered.
Descriptors: cadmium analysis, cytoplasmic granules chemistry, dolphins anatomy and histology, kidney chemistry, Atlantic Ocean, basement membrane ultrastructure, calcium analysis, cytoplasmic granules ultrastructure, Denmark, electron probe microanalysis, environmental exposure adverse effects, kidney ultrastructure, kidney tubules, proximal chemistry, kidney tubules, proximal ultrastructure, phosphorus analysis, water pollutants analysis.
Gaskin, D.E., R. Frank, and M. Holdrinet (1983). Polychlorinated biphenyls in harbor porpoises Phocoena phocoena (L.) from the Bay of Fundy, Canada and adjacent waters, with some information on chlordane and hexachlorobenzene levels. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 12(2): 211-219. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: Canada, harbour porpoise, biphenyls, chlodane, hexachlorobenzene, Phocoena.
Gaskin, D.E., M. Holdrinet, and R. Frank (1971). Organochlorine pesticide residues in harbour porpoises from the Bay of Fundy region. Nature (London) 233(5320): 499-500.
NAL Call Number: 472 N21
Descriptors: pesticides, harbour porpoises, Bay of Fundy, organochlorine, residues.
Gauthier, J.M., H. Dubeau and E. Rassart (2003). Evaluation of genotoxic effects of environmental contaminants in cells of marine mammals, with particular emphasis on beluga whales. In: J.G. Vos, G.D. Bossart, M. Fournier and T.J. O'Shea (Editors), Toxicology of Marine Mammals. New Perspectives: Toxicology and the Environment, Taylor & Francis: London & New York, p. 404-428. ISBN: 0415239141.
NAL Call Number: QL713.2.T685 2003
Descriptors: mammalia, molecular genetics, genotoxic effects of environmental contaminants, chemical pollution, chemical factors, genotoxic effects of contaminants, overview.
Gauthier, J.M., C.D. Metcalfe, and R. Sears (1997). Chlorinated organic contaminants in blubber biopsies from northwestern Atlantic balaenopterid whales summering in the Gulf of St Lawrence. Marine Environmental Research 44(2): 201-223.
NAL Call Number: QH545.W3M36
Descriptors: side effects, pollution, insecticides, residues, Cetacea, whales, Balaenoptera, megaptera, ddt, lindane, pesticides, organochlorine compounds, Atlantic Ocean, agricultural chemicals, Cetacea, mammals, marine areas, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, whales, nontarget effects, Balaenoptera acurostrata, Balaenoptera physalus, Balaenoptera musculus, Megaptera novaeangliae, ddd, tde.
Gauthier, J.M., C.D. Metcalfe, and R. Sears (1997). Validation of the blubber biopsy technique for monitoring of organochlorine contaminants in balaenopterid whales. Marine Environmental Research 43(3): 157-179.
NAL Call Number: QH545.W3M36
Descriptors: pesticides, residues, insecticides, side effects, analytical methods, biopsy, lipids, models, Cetacea, whales, polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorine compounds, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, biological analysis, Cetacea, histocytological analysis, hydrocarbons, mammals, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, nontarget effects, Balaenoptera acurostrata, Balaenoptera musculus.
Gauthier, J.M., E. Pelletier, C. Brochu, S. Moore, C.D. Metcalfe, and P. Beland (1998). Environmental contaminants in tissues of a neonate St Lawrence beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas). Marine Pollution Bulletin 36(1): 102-108.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: mercury, Delphinapterus leucas, pollutants, newborn animals, brain, ddt, hch, polychlorinated biphenyls, immunoglobulins, whales, aquatic animals, pesticides, residues, lipids, insecticides, fungicides, agricultural chemicals, aquatic organisms, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, body parts, central nervous system, Cetacea, delphinapterus, elements, glycoproteins, heavy metals, hydrocarbons, immunological factors, mammals, metallic elements, nervous system, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, proteins, whales, young animals, contaminants, dde, hexachlorobenzene, marine mammals.
Gerpe, M.S., D.H. Rodriguez, V.J. Moreno, R.O. Bastida, and J.A.E. de Moreno (2002). Accumulation of heavy metals in the franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) from Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 1(1): 95-106.
Descriptors: Pontoporia blainvillei, pollutants, concentration, burden distribution and transplacental transference, metal pollution, heavy metals, south west Atlantic, Argentina, Buenos Aires, heavy metals accumulation.
Godard, C.A.J., R.S. Payne, and J.J. Stegeman (2004). Use of skin biopsy slices to investigate cellular effects of chemical exposure in cetacean. Marine Environmental Research 58(2-5): 141. ISSN: 0141-1136.
Descriptors: immune system, chemical coordination and homeostasis, methods and techniques, pollution assessment control and management, toxicology, wildlife management, conservation, immunohistochemistry, immunologic techniques, laboratory techniques, skin biopsy, clinical techniques, diagnostic techniques, environmental risk assessment, protocol validity.
Notes: Meeting Information: 12th International Symposium on Pollutant Responses in Marine Organisms (PRIMO 12), Safety Harbor, FL, USA, May 09-13, 2003.
Goodwin, T.J., L. Coate Li, R.M. Linnehan, and T.G. Hammond (2000). Selected contribution: a three-dimensional model for assessment of in vitro toxicity in Balaena mysticetus renal tissue. Journal of Applied Physiology 89(6): 2508-17. ISSN: 8750-7587.
NAL Call Number: 447.8 J825
Abstract: This study established two- and three-dimensional renal proximal tubular cell cultures of the endangered species bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus), developed SV40-transfected cultures, and cloned the 61-amino acid open reading frame for the metallothionein protein, the primary binding site for heavy metal contamination in mammals. Microgravity research, modulations in mechanical culture conditions (modeled microgravity), and shear stress have spawned innovative approaches to understanding the dynamics of cellular interactions, gene expression, and differentiation in several cellular systems. These investigations have led to the creation of ex vivo tissue models capable of serving as physiological research analogs for three-dimensional cellular interactions. These models are enabling studies in immune function, tissue modeling for basic research, and neoplasia. Three-dimensional cellular models emulate aspects of in vivo cellular architecture and physiology and may facilitate environmental toxicological studies aimed at elucidating biological functions and responses at the cellular level. Marine mammals occupy a significant ecological niche (72% of the Earth's surface is water) in terms of the potential for information on bioaccumulation and transport of terrestrial and marine environmental toxins in high-order vertebrates. Few ex vivo models of marine mammal physiology exist in vitro to accomplish the aforementioned studies. Techniques developed in this investigation, based on previous tissue modeling successes, may serve to facilitate similar research in other marine mammals.
Descriptors: hazardous substances poisoning, kidney drug effects, toxicity tests, whales physiology, amino acid sequence genetics, base sequence genetics, cells, cultured, cloning, molecular, cytological techniques, flow cytometry, kidney cytology, metallothionein genetics, molecular sequence data, rna, messenger genetics, transfection, weightlessness, whales genetics.
Gouteux, B., M. Lebeuf, D.C. Muir, and J.P. Gagne (2003). Levels and temporal trends of toxaphene congeners in beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the St. Lawrence Estuary, Canada. Environmental Science and Technology 37(20): 4603-9. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Environmentally relevant toxaphene congeners were determined in blubber samples of stranded beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the St. Lawrence Estuary (SLE), Canada. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the levels and the temporal trends (1988-1999) of a suite of six chlorobornanes (P26, P40/41, P44, P50, and P62) in the SLE belugas. P26 and P50 mean concentrations were in the same range as those reported for animals living in the Arctic environment suggesting that the atmospheric transport represents the main input of toxaphene to the SLE. A general exponential decline of chlorobornane concentrations in belugas was observed, except for P26 and P50 in males. On average, concentrations decreased by a factor of two in 8.5 years during the 1988-1999 time period. This rate of decline is similar to the reduction of toxaphene emission from agricultural soils in the southern United States reported over the same time period. Some differences in decline rates were observed among the studied CHB congeners. For instance, P62 decreased more rapidly than P26 and P50 in both male and female belugas. Several hypotheses were advanced to explain these differences such as selective metabolism of specific chlorobornanes by SLE belugas or their prey. However, a most likely explanation is the selective degradation of the technical product in soils and atmosphere in the source region.
Descriptors: insecticides analysis, insecticides pharmacokinetics, toxaphene analysis, toxaphene pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical analysis, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, whales, adipose tissue chemistry, Canada, environmental monitoring, insecticides metabolism, time factors, toxaphene metabolism, water pollutants, chemical metabolism.
Granby, K. and C.C. Kinze (1991). Organochlorines in Danish and west Greenland harbour porpoises. Marine Pollution Bulletin 22(9): 458-462.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: Phocoena phocoena, ddt, harbour porpoises, Danish, Greenland, organochlorines.
Green, G.A., R. Cardwell, and M.S. Brancato (1997). Comment on "Elevated accumulation of tributyltin and its breakdown products in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) found stranded along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts". Environmental Science and Technology 31(10): 3032-3034. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Descriptors: pollution, organotin compounds, residues, toxic substances, causes of death, marine environment, dolphins, mammals.
Guise, S.d. (1998). Effects of in vitro exposure of beluga whale leukocytes to selected organochlorines. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health. Part A 55(7): 479-493.
Descriptors: pollutants, ddt, metabolites, polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, toxicity, side effects, Delphinapterus leucas, immune response, blood cells, leukocytes, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, blood, blood cells, cells, Cetacea, delphinapterus, hydrocarbons, immunity, mammals, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, whales, contaminants, nontarget effects.
Guitart, R., X. Guerrero, A.M. Silvestre, J.M. Gutierrez, and R. Mateo (1996). Organochlorine residues in tissues of stripped dolphins affected by the 1990 Mediterranean epizootic: relationships with the fatty acid composition. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 30(1): 79-83. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, pollutants, concentration, residues, Stenella coeruleoalba, fatty acids, brain, lungs, liver, kidneys, skeletal muscle, adverse effects, water pollution, marine environment.
Hansen, L.J., L.H. Schwacke, G.B. Mitchum, A.A. Hohn, R.S. Wells, E.S. Zolman, and P.A. Fair (2004). Geographic variation in polychorinated biphenyl and organochlorine pesticide concentrations in the blubber of bottlenose dolphins from the US Atlantic coast. Science of the Total Environment 319(1-3): 147-72. ISSN: 0048-9697.
Abstract: Concentrations of polychorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other organochlorine contaminants (OCs) were measured in blubber collected from live bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) at three sites along the United States Atlantic coast. Dolphins were sampled via surgical biopsy during capture-release studies near Charleston, South Carolina and Beaufort, North Carolina. Additional animals were sampled using remote biopsy techniques in estuarine waters near Charleston and from the Indian River Lagoon, Florida. Overall concentrations of major contaminant groups were found to vary between sites and mean concentrations of most OCs from male dolphins in the Indian River Lagoon were less than half of those measured from Charleston and Beaufort males. Geometric mean total PCB concentrations were 30, 27 and 14 microg/g lipid for male dolphins sampled in Beaufort, Charleston and the Indian River Lagoon, respectively. Significant variation related to sex- and age-class, as well as geographic sampling location, was seen in the PCB congener profiles. The measured PCB concentrations, although lower than those reported for stranded animals from the 1987/1988 epizootic along the United States mid-Atlantic coast, are sufficiently high to warrant concern for the health of dolphins from the sampled populations, particularly the animals near Charleston and Beaufort.
Descriptors: adipose tissue chemistry, dolphins, pesticides analysis, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis, age factors, analysis of variance, Atlantic Ocean, geography, mass fragmentography, sex factors.
Hasunuma, R., T. Ogawa, Y. Fujise, and Y. Kawanishi (1993). Analysis of selenium metabolites in urine samples of minke whale (Balaenoptera Acutorostrata) using ion exchange chromatography. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. C, Comparative Pharmacology and Toxicology 104(1): 87-9. ISSN: 0742-8413.
Abstract: 1. To study the distribution of selenium metabolites in whale urine, an analytical methodology for separation and determination has been developed. 2. From whale urine, five selenium components, including trimethylselenonium ion were separated and determined by a combination of ion exchange chromatography and fluorometry. 3. The mean urinary selenium level of five minke whales was 1500 ng/ml, with a standard deviation of 400 ng/ml, i.e., about 30 times as high as that for humans.
Descriptors: selenium urine, whales urine, chromatography, ion exchange.
Hayteas, D.L. and D.A. Duffield (2000). High levels of PCB and p,p'-DDE found in the blubber of killer whales (Orcinus orca). Marine Pollution Bulletin 40(6): 558-561. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: DDT, DDE, polychlorinated biphenyls, insecticide residues, pollutants, nontarget organisms, nontarget effects, water pollution, pesticides, agricultural entomology, Delphinidae, arthropods.
Hayteas, D.L. and D.A. Duffield (1997). The determination by HPLC of PCB and p,p'-DDE residues in marine mammals stranded on the Oregon coast, 1991-1995. Marine Pollution Bulletin 34(10): 844-848.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: aquatic animals, mammals, measurement, HPLC, seals, sealions, DDT, analytical methods, aquatic organisms, Carnivora, Cetacea, chromatography, dolphins, mammals, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, Pinnipedia, marine mammals, determination, Grampus griseus, Phocoenoides dalli, Balaenoptera acutorostrata, Delphinus delphis, Phoca vitulina, Zalophus californians, Eumetopias jubatus, Mirounga angustirostris, Phocoena Phocoena, Stenella coeruleoalba, Mesoplodon stejnegeri, DDE.
Henry, J. and P.B. Best (1983). Organochlorine residues in whales landed at Durban, South Africa. Marine Pollution Bulletin 14(6): 223-227. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: South Africa, whales, organochlorine, residues.
Hobbs, K.E., D.C. Muir, and E. Mitchell (2001). Temporal and biogeographic comparisons of PCBs and persistent organochlorine pollutants in the blubber of fin whales from eastern Canada in 1971-1991. Environmental Pollution 114(2): 243-54. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Abstract: Concentrations of PCB congeners and organochlorine (OC) pesticides were studied in archived fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) blubber samples collected in 1971-1972 from Newfoundland (Nfld) and Nova Scotia (NS) with the objective of obtaining a historical perspective on contaminant levels and proportions at a time when many persistent OCs were still in use. Concentrations of sigmaPCBs and sigmaDDTs in the blubber of 17 fin whales from historical whaling stations in 1971-1972 were generally in agreement with previously reported values for fin whales from Atlantic Canada. Although some differences in sex and body length (age) distribution of samples occurred, significant differences were detected in the concentrations and patterns of PCBs, DDTs and chlordanes in whales from Nfld and NS, supporting ecological evidence that whales from these regions represent relatively separate stocks. Temporal and geographical variations were examined by comparing data to those reported for fin whales from the St Lawrence Estuary (StL) in 1991 by Gauthier et al. (1997a). Significantly higher levels of sigmaDDT, sigmaCHL and HCB were found in the NS (1971-1972) stock compared with the StL (1991) animals, and in HCB between the Nfld stock (1971-1972) and the StL (1991) animals, as well as higher p,p'-DDE/sigmaDDT and lower p,p'-DDT/sigmaDDT ratios in the 1991 whales suggesting that temporal trends in these whales between the 1970s and 1990s were consistent with those in other marine mammals in Atlantic Canada. Evidence also suggests that geographical variations in patterns may occur for individuals from two relatively distinct stocks of fin whales in Atlantic Canada (NS, Nfld) and perhaps for one population (StL) related to, but recognisably different from the NS stock.
Descriptors: environmental pollutants pharmacokinetics, polychlorinated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, whales physiology, adipose tissue chemistry, Canada, environmental exposure, environmental monitoring, environmental pollutants analysis, geography, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis, polychlorinated biphenyls chemistry, population dynamics, time factors, tissue distribution, water pollutants, chemical analysis.
Hobbs, K.E., D.C.G. Muir, E.W. Born, R. Dietz, T. Haug, T. Metcalfe, N. Oien, and C. Metcalfe (2003). Levels and patterns of persistent organochlorines in minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) stocks from the North Atlantic and European Arctic. Environmental Pollution 121(2): 239-252. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: organochlorine pesticides, ddt, hch, insecticide residues, water pollution, minke whale, North Atlantic, European Arctic.
Hobbs, K.E., D.C.G. Muir, R. Michaud, P. Beland, R.J. Letcher, and R.J. Norstrom (2003). PCBs and organochlorine pesticides in blubber biopsies from free-ranging St. Lawrence River Estuary beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas), 1994-1998. Environmental Pollution 122(2): 291-302. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: polychlorinated biphenyls, pesticide residues, organochlorine insecticides, insecticide residues, water pollution, Quebec.
Hobson, K.A., F.F. Riget, P.M. Outridge, R. Dietz, and E. Born (2004). Baleen as a biomonitor of mercury content and dietary history of North Atlantic minke whales (Balaenopetra acutorostrata): combining elemental and stable isotope approaches. Science of the Total Environment 331(1-3): 69-82. ISSN: 0048-9697.
Abstract: Baleen is an incrementally-growing tissue of balaenopteran whales which preserves relatively well over time in museums and some archeological sites, and, therefore might be useful for studies examining long-term changes of metal levels in whales. This study examined Hg and stable C and N isotopic composition of baleen plates of the North Atlantic minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), which continues to be a food source for people in Greenland and elsewhere. We compared the Hg levels and stable isotopes of major tissues (kidney, liver and muscle) with those of baleen plates to see whether baleen could be used as a biomonitor of variations of Hg intake and diet both between individuals and within individuals over time. Mercury was significantly correlated with concentrations in all tissues (kidney, liver and muscle). Stable C and N isotopes in baleen were generally similar to those of muscle, which reflects the recent (approximately one month) feeding of the whale, but in some individuals there were significant differences between baleen and muscle. Sectioning of baleen into 1 cm longitudinal increments showed that these differences were due to marked dietary shifts by some individuals over time that had been recorded in the baleen but were lost from the muscle record. Whole baleen C and N isotopes were better correlated with tissue Hg levels, suggesting that baleen may provide a more reliable indicator of long-term average diet, which in turn may be better related to Hg accumulation in tissues than the shorter-term diet record contained in muscle.
Descriptors: mercury pharmacokinetics, water pollutants pharmacokinetics, whales physiology, Atlantic Ocean, carbon isotopes analysis, diet, environmental monitoring methods, Greenland, mercury analysis, nitrogen isotopes analysis, tissue distribution, water pollutants analysis.
Hoekstra, P.F., R.J. Letcher, T.M. O'Hara, S.M. Backus, K.R. Solomon, and D.C. Muir (2003). Hydroxylated and methylsulfone-containing metabolites of polychlorinated biphenyls in the plasma and blubber of bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus). Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 22(11): 2650-8. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Abstract: Bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) blubber (n = 20) and plasma (n = 19) samples were collected during the 1997 to 2000 Inuit subsistence harvests in Barrow, Alaska, USA, to quantify the concentrations of methylsulfone (MeSO2)-containing and hydroxylated (OH) polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) metabolites in this cetacean. The distribution of MeSO2-PCBs in blubber was dominated by 4-MeSO2-substituted congeners, the most abundant being 4-MeSO2-CB-70, 3'-MeSO2-CB-132, and 4-MeSO2-CB-64. Mean (+/- 1 standard error) sum (sigma) MeSO2-PCBs concentrations in blubber were low (6.23 +/- 0.81 ng g(-1) lipid normalized) compared to concentrations previously reported in other marine mammals. However, similar ratios of MeSO2-PCB metabolites to parent PCB congeners among marine mammals suggest that cytochrome P450 2B-like biotransformation and other necessary enzyme-mediated processes and mechanisms that influence the formation and clearance of MeSO2-PCBs exist in the bowhead whale. Pentachlorophenol was the most abundant halogenated phenolic compound quantified in bowhead plasma (1.55 +/- 0.19 ng g(-1) wet wt). Despite indirect evidence for arene epoxidation of the biphenyl moiety inferred from MeSO2-PCB formation, sumOH-PCB concentrations in bowhead plasma were low (1.52 +/- 0.31 ng g(-1) wet wt) compared to humans and marine mammals and were comprised of only two detectable OH-PCB congeners (4'-OH-CB-130 and 4-OH-CB-187). Further research is required to elucidate the toxicokinetics and distribution of OH-PCBs in this cetacean.
Descriptors: environmental exposure, environmental pollutants pharmacokinetics, polychlorinated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, whales, adipose tissue chemistry, biotransformation, environmental pollutants metabolism, polychlorinated biphenyls chemistry, polychlorinated biphenyls metabolism, tissue distribution.
Hoekstra, P.F., T.M. O'Hara, S.J. Pallant, K.R. Solomon, and D.C.G. Muir (2002). Bioaccumulation of organochlorine contaminants in bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) from Barrow, Alaska. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 42(4): 498-507. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: bowhead whales, Alaska, organochlorine, contaminants, bioaccumulation.
Holsbeek, L., C.R. Joiris, V. Debacker, I.B. Ali, P. Roose, J.P. Nellissen, S. Gobert, J.M. Bouquegneau, and M. Bossicart (1999). Heavy metals, organochlorines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sperm whales stranded in the southern North Sea during the 1994/1995 winter. Marine Pollution Bulletin 38(4): 304-313.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: North Sea, pollutants, heavy metals, mercury, selenium, zinc, lead, nickel, cadmium, iron, chromium, copper, titanium, pesticides, organochlorine compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls, aromatic hydrocarbons, muscles, liver, kidneys, residues, physeter, fats, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, Atlantic Ocean, body parts, Cetacea, digestive system, Eastern Atlantic, elements, heavy metals, hydrocarbons, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, musculoskeletal system, North Atlantic, Northeast Atlantic, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, semimetals, transition elements, urinary tract, urogenital system, whales, Physeter catodon.
Honda, K., Y. Fujise, K. Itano, and R. Tatsukawa (1984). Composition of chemical components in bone of striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba: distribution characteristics of heavy metals in various bones [Iron, manganese, zinc, copper, lead, nickel, cadmium selenium, mercury]. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 48(3): 677-683. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: bone, striped dolphin, chemical components, heavy metals, iron, zinc, lead, copper, mercury.
Honda, K., Y. Fujise, R. Tatsukawa, and N. Miyazaki (1984). Composition of chemical components in bone of striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba: Distribution characteristics of major inorganic and organic components in various bones, and their age-related change. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 48(2): 409-418. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, bones, inorganic compounds, organic compounds, foetus, age, proteins, lipids, strontium, alkaline earth metals, anatomy, animal anatomy, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, biological development, body parts, Cetacea, elements, embryonic development, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, metals, musculoskeletal system, organic compounds, physiological functions, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Honda, K. and R. Tatsukawa (1983). Distribution of cadmium and zinc in tissues and organs, and their age-related changes in striped dolphins, Stenella coeruleoalba. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 12(5): 543-550. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: cadmium, zink, tissues, organs, striped dolphins, distribution, age.
Honda, K., R. Tatsukawa, and T. Fujiyama (1982). Distribution characteristics of heavy metals in the organs and tissues of striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 46(12): 3011-3021. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, body parts, tissues, heavy metals, anatomy, animal anatomy, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, Cetacea, industrial pollutants, injurious factors, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, pollutants, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Honda, K., R. Tatsukawa, K. Itano, N. Miyazaki, and T. Fujiyama (1983). Heavy metal concentrations in muscle, liver and kidney tissue of striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba, and their variations with body length, weight, age and sex. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 47(6): 1219-1228. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, heavy metals, muscles, liver, kidneys, length, weight, age, sex, anatomy, animal anatomy, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, biometry, body parts, Cetacea, chemicophysical properties, digestive system, dimensions, industrial pollutants, injurious factors, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, measurement, methods, musculoskeletal system, pollutants, urinary tract, urogenital system, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Houde, M., P.F. Hoekstra, K.R. Solomon, and D.C. Muir (2005). Organohalogen contaminants in delphinoid cetaceans. Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 184: 1-57. ISSN: 0179-5953.
NAL Call Number: TX501.R48
Abstract: This chapter reviews the global distribution, biotransformation, accumulation patterns, and mechanisms of action and the potential impacts of persistent organohalogen contaminants (PHCs) on physiological systems of cetaceans with emphasis on delphinoids. Methods used to study PHCs in stranded and free-living cetaceans are discussed, and concentrations of PHCs of stranded, hunted, by-catch, and free-ranging delphinoids are summarized. Overall, the highest concentrations of PHC contamination were found in delphinoids from industrialized areas of the Northern Hemisphere compared to the Southern Hemisphere. Nonetheless, PHCs are also found in marine mammal tissues from the Southern Hemisphere and in remote regions such as the Arctic, reflecting the global distribution and contamination of PHCs in the marine ecosystem.
Descriptors: dolphins metabolism, environmental monitoring statistics and numerical data, hydrocarbons, halogenated analysis, phenyl ethers analysis, water pollutants, chemical analysis, whales metabolism, adipose tissue chemistry, liver chemistry, muscles chemistry, oceans and seas.
Huschenbeth, E. (1977). Ergebnisse ueber Schwermetall- und Organohalogenuntersuchungen an verschiedenen Zahnwalen von der Ost- und Norseeekueste Schleswig-Holsteins. [Results of heavy metal and organohalogen investigations on various toothed whales of the Schleswig-Holstein Baltic and North Sea coasts]. Informationen Fuer Die Fischwirtschaft 24(5): 162-164. ISSN: 0020-0344.
Descriptors: toothed whales, Baltic Sea, North Sea, heavy metal, organohalogen, investigations, results.
Ikemoto, T., T. Kunito, Y. Anan, H. Tanaka, N. Baba, N. Miyazaki, and S. Tanabe (2004). Association of heavy metals with metallothionein and other proteins in hepatic cytosol of marine mammals and seabirds. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 23(8): 2008-16. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Abstract: Distribution of Cu, Zn, Cd, Ag, Hg, and Se were determined in hepatocytosol of northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus), black-footed albatrosses (Diomedea nigripes), and Dall's porpoises (Phocoenoides dalli). Copper, Zn, and Cd were accumulated preferentially in metallothionein (MT) fraction and their contents in MT fraction increased with the amounts in the hepatocytosol. Silver was bound to both high-molecular-weight substances (HMWS) and MT in the hepatocytosol for all three species, whereas the distribution of Ag in the cytosol was different among the three species. In northern fur seals, Ag mainly was bound to MT, whereas it mainly was associated with HMWS in Dall's porpoises. In contrast, Ag was distributed almost equally in both HMWS and MT for black-footed albatrosses. Mercury content in HMWS and Se content in HMWS and low-molecular-weight substances (LMWS) increased with their contents in hepatocytosol for all the three species. A significant positive correlation was found between Se and Hg contents in high-molecular weight (HMW) fraction in cytosol. The molar ratio of Hg and Se was close to unity in HMW fraction of the specimens with high Hg concentration in cytosol, implying that the Hg-Se complex was bound to the HMWS. Analysis of metals in the hepatocytosol by high-performance liquid chromatography/inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (HPLC/ICP-MS) suggests that multiple isoforms of MT are present in hepatocytosol of the three species and that the metal profiles in hepatocytosols are different among the species. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the association of Ag with HMWS and MT in hepatocytosol of marine mammals and seabirds. Also, distribution and interaction of Hg and Se were investigated for the first time in hepatocytosol of the higher trophic marine animals.
Descriptors: birds physiology, environmental exposure, metallothionein metabolism, metals, heavy poisoning, porpoises physiology, seals, earless physiology, water pollutants poisoning, cytosol chemistry, liver chemistry, metallothionein analysis, tissue distribution.
Ikemoto, T., T. Kunito, H. Tanaka, N. Baba, N. Miyazaki, and S. Tanabe (2004). Detoxification mechanism of heavy metals in marine mammals and seabirds: Interaction of selenium with mercury, silver, copper, zinc, and cadmium in liver. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 47(3): 402-413. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Abstract: Subcellular distribution of mercury, selenium, silver, copper, zinc, and cadmium was determined in the liver of northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus), black-footed albatrosses (Diomedea nigripes), and Dall's porpoises (Phocoenoides dalli). Mercury, selenium, and silver were preferentially accumulated in nuclear, lysosomal, and mitochondrial fraction with an increase in their hepatic concentrations, whereas copper, zinc, and cadmium were accumulated mainly in cytosol with an increase in the hepatic concentrations for all three species. To gain insight into the existing state of the metals, they were extracted with four extractants-sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS); 2-mercaptoethanol; 2-mercaptoethanol + guanidinium thiocyanate; and copper sulfate (CuSO4)-at several concentrations from nuclear, lysosomal, and mitochondrial fraction in liver from a specimen of northern fur seal. Extraction efficiencies of the metals for 2-mercaptoethanol + guanidinium thiocyanate and CuSO4 were much higher than those for SDS and 2-mercaptoethanol. Also, for all individuals of the three species, metals were extracted by the three extractants-2% SDS; 0.25 mol/L 2-mercaptoethanol + 5 mol/L guanidinium thiocyanate; and 0.1 mol/L CuSO4-from nuclear, lysosomal, and mitochondrial fraction of liver. In the northern fur seals with higher concentration of mercury, the molar ratio of selenium to mercury approached unity in the nonextractable fraction of 0.25 mol/L 2-mercaptoethanol + 5 mol/L guanidinium thiocyanate, suggesting the possible formation of mercuric selenide (HgSe) with increasing hepatic concentration. Because the nonextractable content of mercury and its distribution were larger for black-footed albatross than those for the other two species, it was suggested that the black-footed albatross has a stronger ability to form a stable compound(s) of mercury in the liver. It is notable that the existing state of silver was similar to that of mercury as judged by their subcellular distribution and the extraction tests, suggesting that silver also interacted with selenium in the liver of marine animals used in this study.
Descriptors: Diomedea nigripes, Callorhinus ursinus, Phocoenoides dalli, pollutants, heavy metals, liver detoxification mechanism, pollutant interactions, liver.
Itano, K., S. Kawai, N. Miyazaki, R. Tatsukawa, and T. Fujiyama (1984). Body burdens and distribution of mercury and selenium in striped dolphins. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 48(5): 1117-1121. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, tissues, mercury, selenium, age, organomercurial compounds, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, Cetacea, elements, heavy metals, industrial pollutants, injurious factors, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, metals, organic compounds, pollutants, semimetals, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Itano, K., S. Kawai, N. Miyazaki, R. Tatsukawa, and T. Fujiyama (1984). Mercury and selenium levels at the fetal and suckling stages of striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 48(7): 1691-1698. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, fetus, suckling, mercury, selenium, liver, adipose tissues, anatomy, animal anatomy, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, biological development, body parts, Cetacea, digestive system, elements, embryonic development, feeding, heavy metals, industrial pollutants, injurious factors, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, metals, nutrition, physiological functions, pollutants, semi-metals, tissues, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Itano, K., S. Kawai, N. Miyazaki, R. Tatsukawa, and T. Fujiyama (1984). Mercury and selenium levels in striped dolphins [Stenella coeruleoalba] caught off the Pacific coast of Japan. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 48(5): 1109-1116. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, mercury, selenium, Japan, age, body parts, organomercurial compounds, northwest Pacific, coasts, anatomy, animal anatomy, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, Asia, Cetacea, elements, heavy metals, industrial pollutants, injurious factors, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, marine areas, metals, organic compounds, Pacific Ocean, physiographic features, pollutants, semimetals, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Itano, K., S. Kawai, and R. Tatsukawa (1985). Distribution of mercury and selenium in muscle of striped dolphins [Stenella coeruleoalba]. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 49(2): 515-517. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, muscles, mercury, selenium, organomercurial compounds, inorganic compounds, anatomy, animal anatomy, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, body parts, Cetacea, elements, heavy metals, industrial pollutants, injurious factors, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, metals, musculoskeletal system, organic compounds, pollutants, semimetals, vertebrates.
Itano, K., S. Kawai, and R. Tatsukawa (1985). Properties of mercury and selenium in salt-insoluble fraction of muscles in striped dolphin. Bulletin of the Japanese Society of Scientific Fisheries 51(7): 1129-1131. ISSN: 0021-5392.
NAL Call Number: 414.9 J274
Descriptors: dolphins, muscles, mercury, selenium, chemical structure, solubility, salts, anatomy, animal anatomy, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, body parts, Cetacea, chemicophysical properties, elements, heavy metals, industrial pollutants, injurious factors, inorganic compounds, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, metals, musculoskeletal system, pollutants, semimetals, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English and Japanese summaries.
Jarman, W.M., R.J. Norstrom, D.C.G. Muir, B. Rosenberg, M. Simon, and R.W. Baird (1996). Levels of organochlorine compounds, including PCDDS and PCDFS, in the blubber of cetaceans from the west coast of North America. Marine Pollution Bulletin 32(5): 426-436.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: side effects, insecticides, residues, mammals, vertebrates, Phocoena, pesticides, organochlorine compounds, ddt, camphechlor, halogenated hydrocarbons, Cetacea, USA, California, agricultural chemicals, America, chordata, mammals, North America, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pacific states, pesticides, western states, nontarget effects, Eschrichtius robustus, Orcinus orca, Pseudorca crassidens, Grampus griseus, Phocoenoides dalli, Phocoena Phocoena, dde.
Jepson, P.D., P.M. Bennett, R. Deaville, C.R. Allchin, J.R. Baker, and R.J. Law (2005). Relationships between polychlorinated biphenyls and health status in harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) stranded in the United Kingdom. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 24(1): 238-248. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Descriptors: biochemistry and molecular biophysics, biogeography, population studies, immune system, chemical coordination and homeostasis, infection, marine ecology, pollution, toxicology, infectious disease, mortality, trauma, injury, mortality, ecotoxicology, health status, immunosuppression, immunotoxic relationship, nutritional status, stranding.
Joiris, C.R. (1997). Ecotoxicology of stable pollutants: organochlorines and heavy metals in seabirds and marine mammals. Bulletin De La Societe Royale Des Sciences De Liege 66(1-3): 51-59. ISSN: 0037-9565.
Descriptors: North Sea, waterfowl, stenella, delphinus, Phocoena, toxicology, pollutants, heavy metals, organochlorine compounds, bioaccumulation, Atlantic Ocean, Cetacea, contamination, dolphins, Eastern Atlantic, elements, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, North Atlantic, Northeast Atlantic, organic halogen compounds.
Joiris, C.R., L. Holsbeek, D. Bolbat, C. Gascard, T. Stanev, A. Komakhidze, W. Baumgartner, and A. Birkun (2001). Total and organic mercury in the Black Sea harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena relicta. Marine Pollution Bulletin 42(10): 905-11. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Abstract: This paper reports on mercury (Hg) concentrations in different tissues (liver, muscle, kidney, blubber and brain) of harbour porpoises Phocoena phocoena found dead in the Black Sea between 1997 and 1999, mainly bycaught in fishing nets (n = 79). Total Hg and organic Hg (MeHg) were determined. The main factor affecting Hg accumulation was, as expected, age, with MeHg concentration increasing with age. Accumulation of high concentrations of inorganic Hg in the liver was probably due to a slow demethylation process implying the formation of tiemannite (HgSe). In older adults, liver concentrations reached 35 microg g(-1) dry weight ('ppm') total Hg and 3 microg g(-1) dw MeHg. A geographical comparison with existing data from other regions showed a generally low Hg contamination of Black Sea porpoises, one order of magnitude lower than, e.g. in the North Sea.
Descriptors: liver metabolism, mercury pharmacokinetics, porpoises metabolism, adipose tissue metabolism, age factors, brain metabolism, kidney metabolism, methylmercury compounds pharmacokinetics, muscles metabolism, tissue distribution.
Joiris, C.R., L. Holsbeek, M. Bossicart, and G. Tapia (1997). Mercury and organochlorines in four sperm whales stranded on the Belgian coast, November 1994. Bulletin De L' Institut Royal Des Sciences Naturelles De Belgique Biologie (Belgium). Bulletin Van Het Koninlijk Belgisch Instituut Voor Natuurwetenschappen - Biologie 67(Suppl.): 133. ISSN: 0374-6429.
NAL Call Number: QH301.I48
Abstract: Four sperm whales (three subadult males stranded on the Belgian coast, a fourth older male found dead at sea) were analysed for total mercury, methylmercury and organochlorines. All four were part of a total of 24 sperm whales that stranded on the North Sea coasts over a period of six months, a highly unusual phenomenon. Total mercury levels ranged from 0.5 microg/g fw in kidney and 1 in muscle, up to 15 in liver. The finding of at least 90 per cent of the mercury in its inorganic form confirms the existence of detoxification mechanisms in the liver of cetaceans. PCB concentrations in muscle, liver, kidney and blubber ranged from 10 to 25 microg/g lipids. These results are in the same order of magnitude as literature data, which however does not imply that there is no impact on the populations. Social affiliation with a particular adult bull rather than a direct effect of pollutants may have been the primary cause of the stranding of the three younger animals: they apparently remained close to the older one (the leader?) dead at sea, and stranded in very shallow water. Indirect impact of anthropogenic pollutants influencing the behaviour and/or the health of a social cluster is one plausible hypothesis to explain why a large number of sperm whales got trapped in the North Sea, but limited data available on the large bull fail to support this.
Descriptors: physeter, death, beaches, postmortem examination, mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls, pesticides, liver, chromatography, detoxification, sea pollution, behavior, pollutants, North Sea, Belgium, analytical methods, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, Atlantic Ocean, biological analysis, body parts, Cetacea, developmental stages, digestive system, Eastern Atlantic, elements, Europe, heavy metals, histocytological analysis, hydrocarbons, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, North Atlantic, Northeast Atlantic, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, physiographic features, pollution, processing, water pollution, Western Europe, whales.
Language of Text: English and French summaries.
Notes: Meeting Information: Proceedings of the Symposium "The North Sea Sperm Whales, One Year After" Held in Koksijde (Belgium) on the Anniversary of the Stranding of Four Sperm Whales on the Belgian Coast, Koksijde Belgium, Nov. 16-18, 1995.
Kajiwara, N., S. Matsuoka, H. Iwata, S. Tanabe, F.C.W. Rosas, G. Fillmann, and J.W. Readman (2004). Contamination by persistent organochlorines in cetaceans incidentally caught along Brazilian coastal waters. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 46(1): 124-134. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, contaminants, bioaccumulation, Cetacea, marine mammals, Brazil.
Kannan, K., S. Corsolini, S. Focardi, S. Tanabe, and R. Tatsukawa (1996). Accumulation pattern of butyltin compounds in dolphin, tuna, and shark collected from Italian coastal waters. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 31(1): 19-23. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: organotin compounds, contaminants, tributyrin, metabolites, concentration, Tursiops truncatus, Thunnus, Prionace, liver, fat, kidneys, muscles, marine environment, coastal areas, Mediterranean Sea, Italy, Thunnus thynnus, Prionace glauca, blubber.
Kannan, K., J. Koistinen, K. Beckmen, T. Evans, J.F. Gorzelany, K.J. Hansen, P.D. Jones, E. Helle, M. Nyman, and J.P. Giesy (2001). Accumulation of perfluorooctane sulfonate in marine mammals. Environmental Science and Technology 35(8): 1593-8. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) is a perfluorinated molecule that has recently been identified in the sera of nonindustrially exposed humans. In this study, 247 tissue samples from 15 species of marine mammals collected from Florida, California, and Alaskan coastal waters; and northern Baltic Sea; the Arctic (Spitsbergen); and Sable Island in Canada were analyzed for PFOS. PFOS was detected in liver and blood of marine mammals from most locations including those from Arctic waters. The greatest concentrations of PFOS found in liver and blood were 1520 ng/g wet wt in a bottlenose dolphin from Sarasota Bay, FL, and 475 ng/mL in a ringed seal from the northern Baltic Sea (Bothnian Sea), respectively. No age-dependent increase in PFOS concentrations in marine mammals was observed in the samples analyzed. The occurrence of PFOS in marine mammals from the Arctic waters suggests widespread global distribution of PFOS including remote locations.
Descriptors: alkanesulfonic acids pharmacokinetics, fluorocarbons pharmacokinetics, liver chemistry, alkanesulfonic acids blood, carnivora, dolphins, fluorocarbons blood, geography, seals, earless, seawater, species specificity, whales.
Kannan, K., K. Senthilkumar, B.G. Loganathan, S. Takahashi, D.K. Odell, and S. Tanabe (1997). Elevated accumulation of tributyltin and its breakdown products in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) found stranded along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. [Erratum: Aug 1997, v. 31 (8), p. 2444.]. Environental Science and Technology 31(1): 296-301. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Descriptors: bottlenose dolphins, stranded, tributyltin, accumulation, breakdown, Tursiops truncatus.
Kannan, K. and S. Tanabe (1997). Response to comment on "elevated accumulation of tributyltin and its breakdown products in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) found stranded along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts". Environental Science and Technology 31(10): 3035-3036. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Descriptors: bottlenose dolphins, stranded, tributylin, accumulation, response.
Notes: Original article published in this journal January 1997, v. 31 (1), p. 296-301.
Kannan, K., S. Tanabe, and R. Tatsukawa (1994). Biodegradation capacity and residue pattern of organochlorines in Ganges river dolphins from India. Toxicological and Environmental Chemistry 42(3-4): 249-261.
Descriptors: India, side effects, insecticides, residues, aquatic animals, metabolism, mammals, dolphins, hch, ddt, fungicides, hhdn, polychlorinated biphenyls, heptachlor, pesticides, rivers, agricultural chemicals, animals, aquatic organisms, aromatic compounds, Asia, Cetacea, halogenated hydrocarbons, inland waters, mammals, natural resources, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, physiographic features, South Asia, surface water, water resources, nontarget effects, platanista, Platanista gangetica, hexachlorobenzene, aldrin, chlordanes.
Karlson, K., R. Ishaq, G. Becker, P. Berggren, D. Broman, and A. Colmsjo (2000). PCBs, DDTs and methyl sulphone metabolites in various tissues of harbour porpoises from Swedish waters. Environmental Pollution 110(1): 29-46. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: contaminants, polychlorinated biphenyls, DDT, DDE, aquatic animals, pollution, marine environment, Phocoena, harbour porpoise, tissues, metabolites.
Karuppiah, S., A. Subramanian, and J.P. Obbard (2005). Organochlorine residues in odontocete species from the southeast coast of India. Chemosphere 60(7): 891-897. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: Blubber from bottle-nose dolphins, spinner dolphins, humpback dolphin (Tursiops truncatus, Stenella longirostris and Sousa chinensis) were collected from the Bay of Bengal (southeast coast of India) and analyzed for the organochlorine pesticides hexachlorocyclohexane (HCHs), p,p'-dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane (DDTs), and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). All nine specimens analyzed contained considerable levels of all the three chemical classes where DDT was in the range of 3330-23330ng/g; HCHs in the range of 95-765ng/g; and PCBs in the range of 210-1220ng/g (wet weight basis). The reasons for this and the variations in the isomer pattern of HCHs and DDT and its metabolites in marine mammal tissues are discussed.
Descriptors: dolphins, India, organochlorines, odontocete, DDT, PCBs, HCHs, metabolites, tissues.
Kerkhoff, M., J. Boer de, and J. Geerdes (1981). Heptachlor epoxide in marine mammals. Science of the Total Environment 19(1): 41-50.
NAL Call Number: RA565.S365
Abstract: The presence of heptachlor epoxide in harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) and white-beaked dolphins (Lagenorhynchus albirostris) has been confirmed by chemical derivatization and mass spectrometric analyses. An unknown compound at a retention time close to that of heptachlor epoxide interfered in the determination by electron capture detector-gas chromatography. On a WCOT CP-Sil 7 column programmed from 85 to 175 deg C two poorly spearated peaks could be detected. Heptachlor epoxide contents up to 1.7 mg/kg (on a fat basis) were obtained, which were about 200 times lower than the PCB levels. The same ratio was also observed in fish from the same area.
Descriptors: marine mammals, heptachlor epoxide, harbour seals, white beaked dolphins.
Language of Text: English summary.
Kim, E.Y., H. Iwata, Y. Fujise, and S. Tanabe (2004). Searching for novel CYP members using cDNA library from a minke whale liver. Marine Environmental Research 58(2-5): 495-498. ISSN: 0141-1136.
Abstract: The contaminant-induced cytochrome P450 (CYP) members in minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) can be potential biomarkers of the contaminant exposure and toxic effects. In this study, we constructed a cDNA library from the liver of minke whale from the North Pacific, and further screened a total of 6930 clones randomly selected in the library for the isolation of cDNA clones encoding novel members of CYP superfamily. The screening revealed the isolation of six novel CYP cDNA clones that are classified into CYP1A, CYP2C, CYP2E, CYP3A, CYP4, and CYP4A subfamilies. The BLAST homology search using the partial cDNA fragments of four CYP subfamilies (CYP1A, CYP2C, CYP2E and CYP4A) demonstrated that the minke whale CYPs were most closely related to pig CYPs (81û91%). Identification of multiple CYP genes in marine mammal species such as minke whale will provide new insights into the metabolic or toxicological functions of individual CYP members.
Descriptors: Balaenoptera acutorostrata, cytochromes, biomarker significance of novel members, liver, molecular genetics, cdna library construction, environmental indicators, chemical pollution, north Pacific, cytochrome p450, cdna library construction and biomarker significance.
Kleivane, L., J.U. Skaare, A. Bjorge, E. Ruiter de., and P.J.H. Reijnders (1995). Organochlorine pesticide residue and PCBs in harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) incidentally caught in Scandinavian waters. Environmental Pollution 89(2): 137-146. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: organochlorine compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls, pollutants, Phocoena, body fat, concentration, ddt, pesticide residues, nutritional state, age differences, water pollution, marine environment, Atlantic Ocean, Norway, Netherlands, blubber.
Krahn, M.M., D.P. Herman, G.M. Ylitalo, C.A. Sloan, D.G. Burrows, R.C. Hobbs, B.A. Mahoney, G.K. Yanagida, J. Calambokidis, and S.E. Moore (2004). Stratification of lipids, fatty acids and organochlorine contaminants in blubber of white whales and killer whales. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 6(2): 175-189. ISSN: 1561-0713.
Abstract: The biopsy - via dart. trocar or surgery - is becoming the preferred protocol for sampling skin and blubber of many cetacean species, because a small sample from a healthy animal may provide better information than a larger sample collected via necropsy from an ill or emaciated animal. Furthermore, the biopsy is often the only means of obtaining samples (e.g. for threatened or endangered species). Because biopsy darts collect only a small sample of tissue - and blubber can be heterogeneous in structure and composition - it is essential to compare the results obtained from biopsies to those found by analysing full-thickness blubber samples obtained via necropsy. This manuscript compares blubber stratification in two odontocete species, white whales (Delphinapterus leucas) and killer whales (Orcinus orca). Five parameters (i.e. lipid percent and classes, contaminant concentrations and profiles, fatty acid profiles) were measured by blubber depth. Results of these comparisons strongly suggest that biopsy results must be interpreted with caution and in conjunction with results from species-specific blubber depth profiling. For example, lipid classes measured in biopsy samples of white whales and killer whales were similar to those for equivalent-depth samples obtained by necropsy. In addition, lipid-adjusted contaminant concentrations measured in dart or trocar samples adequately represented those obtained by necropsy of both species. Conversely, the lipid content in biopsy samples was lower than that found in same-depth necropsied samples due to loss of lipid during sampling. Also, because of the high level of fatty acid stratification observed, fatty acid profiles from the outer blubber layer collected via biopsy from both species are less likely than the metabolically active inner layer to be useful in determining the prey species consumed by these odontocetes. This study demonstrates, for white and killer whales, that property interpreted results from blubber biopsies can provide valuable information about the body condition, health and life history of individual animals.
Descriptors: Orcinus orca, Delphinapterus leucas, lipids, pollutants, organochlorine contaminants, dermis, blubber, stratification of lipids, fatty acids and organochlorine contaminants.
Krishna, D.A.S., L. Holsbeek, J. Browning, U. Siebert, A. Birkun Jr., and J.M. Bouquegneau (2004). Trace metal and stable isotope measurements (delta 13C and delta 15N) in the harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena relicta from the Black Sea. Environmental Pollution 131(2): 197-204. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: animal tissues, cadmium, copper, iron, liver, mercury, pollution, selenium, zinc, Phocoena, trace metal, harbour porpoise, isotopes.
Kubota, R., T. Kunito, and S. Tanabe (2003). Occurrence of several arsenic compounds in the liver of birds, cetaceans, pinnipeds, and sea turtles. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 22(3): 1200-1207. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Descriptors: arsenates, arsenic, arsenicals, arsenites, liver, marine environment, marine mammals, poisoning, sea birds, toxicity, wild animals, wild birds, birds, Caretta caretta, Cetacea, Chelonia mydas, Corvus, Larus, Phoca, Phocoenidae, Pinnipedia, Procellariiformes, seals, turtles, whales.
Kubota, R., T. Kunito, and S. Tanabe (2002). Chemical speciation of arsenic in the livers of higher trophic marine animals. Marine Pollution Bulletin 45(1-12): 218-23. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Abstract: Concentrations of total arsenic and individual arsenic compounds were determined in livers of cetaceans (Dall's porpoise and short-finned pilot whale), pinnipeds (harp and ringed seals), sirenian (dugong), and sea turtles (green and loggerhead turtles) to characterize arsenic accumulation profiles in higher trophic marine animals. Hepatic arsenic concentrations in sea turtles were highest among the species examined. Chemical speciation of arsenic revealed that arsenobetaine was the major arsenic compound in almost all the species. In contrast, arsenobetaine was a minor constituent in dugong. Dimethylarsinic acid, methylarsonic acid, arsenocholine, tetramethylarsonium ion, arsenite, and an unidentified arsenic compound were also detected as minor constituents. However, the composition of arsenic compounds was different among these species. These results might reflect the differences in the metabolism of arsenic and/or the compositions of arsenic compounds in their preys. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the large variation in the composition of arsenic species in liver of marine mammals and sea turtles.
Descriptors: arsenic chemistry, dugong, food chain, liver chemistry, porpoises, seals, earless, turtles, water pollutants pharmacokinetics, whales, arsenic pharmacokinetics, chromatography, high pressure liquid, spectrum analysis, mass, tissue distribution.
Kucklick, J.R., K.J. Stahl, W. McFee, P.R. Becker, H. Stapleton, and J.E. Baker (2002). Toxaphene and PBDEs in Atlantic white-sided and rough-toothed dolphins. Organohalogen Compounds 58: 453-455. ISSN: 1026-4892.
Descriptors: Lagenorhynchus acutus, Steno bredanensis, pollutants, dermis, blubber, chemical pollution, chemical factors, north west Atlantic, persistent organic pollutants, concentrations in blubber.
Kuehl, D.W. and R. Haebler (1995). Organochlorine, organobromine, metal, and selenium residues in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) collected during an unusual mortality event in the Gulf of Mexico, 1990. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 28(4): 494-499. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: pesticide residues, polychlorinated biphenyls, hexachlorobenzene, DDE, polybrominated biphenyls, heavy metals, mercury, lead, cadmium, chromium, manganese, selenium, liver, marine mammals, water pollution, nontarget organisms, organochlorine insecticides, adipose tissue, chlordane, mirex, lindane, DDT, dieldrin, residues, pesticides, nontarget effects, agricultural entomology, dolphins, Tursiops truncatus.
Kuehl, D.W., R. Haebler, and C. Potter (1994). Coplanar PCB and metal residues in dolphins from the U.S. Atlantic coast including Atlantic bottlenose obtained during the 1987/88 mass mortality. Chemosphere 28(6): 1245-1253.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: wild animals, poisoning, toxicology, water pollution, mortality, metals, biphenyl, dolphins, animals, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, Cetacea, dolphins, hydrocarbons, mammals, pollution, wildlife, Tursiops truncatus, Delphinus delphis, Lagenorhynchus acutus.
Kuiken, T., U. Hofle, P.M. Bennett, C.R. Allchin, J.K. Kirkwood, J.R. Baker, E.C. Appleby, C.H. Lockyer, M.J. Walton, and M.C. Sheldrick (1993). Adrenocortical hyperplasia, disease and chlorinated hydrocarbons in the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena). Marine Pollution Bulletin 26(8): 440-446.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: porpoises, insecticides, biphenyl, sea pollution, stress, adrenal glands, organochlorine compounds, animal glands, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, body parts, Cetacea, endocrine glands, hydrocarbons, mammals, organic halogen compounds, pesticides, pollution, water pollution.
Kunito, T., S. Nakamura, T. Ikemoto, Y. Anan, R. Kubota, S. Tanabe, F.C.W. Rosas, G. Fillmann, and J.W. Readman (2004). Concentration and subcellular distribution of trace elements in liver of small cetaceans incidentally caught along the Brazilian coast. Marine Pollution Bulletin 49(7/8): 574-587. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: age differences, arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, contamination, copper, gallium, heavy metals, iron, lead, liver, manganese, marine mammals, mercury, molybdenum, poisoning, rubidium, selenium, silver, species differences, strontium, toxicity, trace elements, vanadium, water pollution, wild animals, zinc, Cetacea, Delphinus, dolphins, Stenella, Stenella coeruleoalba, distribution, concentration.
Kunito, T., I. Watanabe, G. Yasunaga, Y. Fujise, and S. Tanabe (2002). Using trace elements in skin to discriminate the populations of minke whales in southern hemisphere. Marine Environmental Research 53(2): 175-97. ISSN: 0141-1136.
NAL Call Number: QH545.W3M36
Abstract: Concentrations of 12 trace elements (V, Cr, Mn, Cu, Zn, Se, Rb, Sr, Cd, Cs, Ba, and Hg) were determined in liver and skin tissues of minke whales from various regions within the Antarctic Ocean. Cd concentrations in livers of southern minke whale were apparently higher than those in cetaceans from other regions, while Hg concentrations were lower. There were significant positive correlations between body length and concentrations of Cd and Hg in the liver. The concentrations of all trace elements in the skin were lower than those in other cetaceans reported previously. Significant positive correlations between liver and skin were found for Cr, Mn, Cu, Zn, Rb, Cd, and Cs, implying that the concentrations of these trace elements in the skin reflect those of internal organs. Large interannual variation of the accumulation pattern of trace elements in the skin was observed for the southern minke whales from Area V. There were significant differences in the skin element concentrations among Areas III, IV, and V, especially for males. Also, discriminant analysis between geographically two different groups collected during 1995/1996 austral summer season, based on the concentrations of trace elements in the skin, allowed for a correct classification of 90% of these minke whales. These results suggest that measurement of trace elements in skin samples could provide valuable information on the status of contamination and possible geographic differences in the accumulation levels in southern minke whales.
Descriptors: environmental monitoring methods, skin chemistry, trace elements analysis, water pollutants analysis, whales, environmental exposure, geography, liver chemistry, population dynamics, seasons, tissue distribution, water pollutants adverse effects.
Kwohn, Y.T., S. Yamazaki, A. Okubo, E. Yoshimura, R. Tatsukawa, and S. Toda (1986). Isolation and characterization of metallothionein from kidney of striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 50(11): 2881-2885. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: Cetacea, kidneys, proteins, cadmium, cysteine, heavy metals, amino acids, anatomy, animal anatomy, body parts, elements, heavy metals, industrial pollutants, injurious factors, mammals, metals, organic compounds, organic nitrogen compounds, pollutants, rare earth elements, urinary tract, urogenital system, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Lahvis, G.P., R.S. Wells, D.W. Kuehl, J.L. Stewart, H.L. Rhinehart, and C.S. Via (1995). Decreased lymphocyte responses in free-ranging bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) are associated with increased concentrations of PCBs and DDT in peripheral blood. Environmental Health Perspectives 103(Suppl. 4): 67-72. ISSN: 0091-6765.
NAL Call Number: RA565.A1E54 Suppl.
Descriptors: blood and lymphatics, transport and circulation, cell biology, ecology, environmental sciences, immune system, chemical coordination and homeostasis, marine ecology, pest assessment control and management, pollution assessment control and management, toxicology, contaminant, Gulf of Mexico, immune dysfunction, mortality, North Atlantic Ocean, polychlorinated biphenyls.
Lapseritis, J.M. and M.E. Hahn (2004). Use of skin biopsies to characterize the aryl hydrocarbon receptor in the north Atlantic right whale, Eubalaena glacialis. Marine Environmental Research 58(2-5): 136. ISSN: 0141-1136.
Descriptors: environmental sciences, pollution, assessment, toxicology, polymerase chain reaction, laboratory techniques, blubber biopsy, clinical techniques, diagnostic techniques, skin biopsy, diagnostic techniques, Atlantic right whale, hydrocarbon receptor.
Notes: Meeting Information: 12th International Symposium on Pollutant Responses in Marine Organisms (PRIMO 12), Safety Harbor, FL, USA, 2003.
Latimer, J.S., W.S. Boothman, C.E. Pesch, G.L. Chmura, V. Pospelova, and S. Jayaraman (2003). Environmental stress and recovery: the geochemical record of human disturbance in New Bedford Harbor and Apponagansett Bay, Massachusetts (USA). Science of the Total Environment 313(1-3): 153-76. ISSN: 0048-9697.
Abstract: Sediments record the history of contamination to estuaries. Analysis of the concentrations of toxic organic compounds, contaminant and crustal metals, organic carbon content and isotopic composition in sediment cores from two estuarine systems in Buzzards Bay allowed reconstruction of human impacts over 350 years. Vertical distributions of the contaminants correlate with changes in the nature of watershed/estuarine activities. All contaminants were highly enriched (tens to hundreds times background) in modern New Bedford Harbor sediments. Enrichment began around the turn of the 20th century for all but PCBs, which were first synthesized in the 1930s. An increase in organic carbon content and a shift of carbon isotopes toward a more terrestrial signature illustrates increasing anthropogenic impact in New Bedford as population grew along with the industrial base. Institution of environmental protection measures in the late 20th century was reflected in decreased, although still substantially elevated, concentrations of contaminants. A lack of industrial development in Apponagansett Bay resulted in much lower concentrations of the same indicators, although specific contaminants related to the early whaling industry increased significantly above background as early as the late 18th century. The similarity of indicators in older portions of cores from NBH and unimpacted Apponagansett Bay demonstrates that cores can be used to establish reference conditions as successfully as using separate sites judged a priori to represent the reference state. The historical reconstruction approach provides the basis for establishing relationships between environmental stressors and factors that drive the stressors, as well as a framework for the assessment of ecological response(s) to environmental stressors over a range of time and/or exposure scales.
Descriptors: geologic sediments chemistry, water pollutants history, environmental monitoring, environmental pollutants analysis, environmental pollutants history, fisheries, geology, history, 18th century, history, 19th century, history, 20th century, industry, Massachusetts, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis, polychlorinated biphenyls history, reference values, water pollutants analysis, whales.
Law, R.J., C.R. Allchin, B.R. Jones, P.D. Jepson, J.R. Baker, and C.J.H. Spurrier (1997). Metals and organochlorines in tissues of a Blainville's beaked whale (Mesoplodon densirostris) and a killer whale (Orcinus orca) stranded in the United Kingdom. Marine Pollution Bulletin 34(3): 208-212.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: metals, whales, side effects, pollution, aquatic mammals, organochlorine compounds, residues, Cetacea, pesticides, United Kingdom, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic organisms, British Isles, Europe, mammals, organic halogen compounds, Western Europe, nontarget effects, marine mammals, Mesoplodon densirostris, Orcinus orca.
Law, R.J., C.R. Allchin, and R.J. Morris (1995). Uptake of organochlorines (Chlorobiphenyls, Dieldrin; total PCB & DDT) in bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) from Cardigan Bay, West Wales. Chemosphere 30(3): 547-560. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: ddt, dieldrin, insecticide residues, uptake, dolphins, delphinidae, water pollution, food chains, trophic levels.
Law, R.J., M.E. Bennett, S.J. Blake, C.R. Allchin, B.R. Jones, and C.J.H. Spurrier (2001). Metals and organochlorines in pelagic cetaceans stranded on the coasts of England and Wales. Marine Pollution Bulletin 42(6): 522-526. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, DDT, HCH, hexachlorobenzene, iron, lead, liver, marine animals, mercury, nickel, nontarget organisms, organochlorine insecticides, organochlorine pesticides, pesticide residues, pesticides, zinc, Stenella coeruleoalba, metals, pelagic cetaceans.
Law, R.J., C.F. Fileman, A.D. Hopkins, J.R. Baker, J. Harwood, D.B. Jackson, S. Kennedy, A.R. Martin, and R.J. Morris (1991). Concentrations of trace metals in the livers of marine mammals (seals, porpoises and dolphins) from waters around the British Isles. Marine Pollution Bulletin 22(4): 183-191.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: seals, sea pollution, British Isles, porpoises, dolphins, mercury, chromium, nickel, copper, zinc, cadmium, lead, residues, carnivora, Cetacea, elements, Europe, heavy metals, mammals, metallic elements, Pinnipedia, pollution, transition elements, water pollution, western Europe.
Law, R.J., R.J. Morris, C.R. Allchin, B.R. Jones, and M.D. Nicholson (2003). Metals and organochlorines in small cetaceans stranded on the east coast of Australia. Marine Pollution Bulletin 46(9): 1206-1211. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: Delphinus delphis, Peponocephala electra, Tursiops truncatus aduncus, pollutants, chemical pollution, chemical factors, west Pacific, Australia, metals and organochlorines, tissue levels.
Law, R.J., R.L. Stringer, C.R. Allchin, and B.R. Jones (1996). Metals and organochlorines in sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus [P. catodon]) stranded around the North Sea during the 1994/1995 winter. Marine Pollution Bulletin 32(1): 72-77.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: side effects, aquatic animals, insecticides, residues, pesticides, heavy metals, North Sea, marine areas, whales, organochlorine compounds, animals, aquatic organisms, Atlantic Ocean, Cetacea, Eastern Atlantic, elements, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, North Atlantic, Northeast Atlantic, organic halogen compounds, pesticides, whales, nontarget effects, marine animals, Physeter catodon.
Le, L.T.H., S. Takahashi, K. Saeki, N. Nakatani, S. Tanabe, N. Miyazaki, and Y. Fujise (1999). High percentage of butyltin residues in total tin in the livers of cetaceans from Japanese coastal waters. Environmental Science and Technology 33(11): 1781-1786. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Descriptors: pollutants, Cetacea, Japan.
Lebeuf, M., B. Gouteux, L. Measures, and S. Trottier (2004). Levels and temporal trends (1988-1999) of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the St. Lawrence Estuary, Canada. Environmental Science and Technology 38(11): 2971-7. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were determined in blubber samples of 54 stranded adult beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) collected between 1988 and 1999 in the St. Lawrence Estuary (SLE), Quebec, Canada. Summed concentrations of 10 PBDE congeners (sigmaPBDEs) measured in beluga samples varied between 20 and almost 1000 ng/g wet weight. According to the PBDE concentrations in marine mammals reported in the scientific literature, SLE belugas appear to be relatively lightly contaminated. Only a few predominant congeners (namely, PBDE-47, -99, and -100) represent on average more than 75% of sigmaPBDEs in SLE belugas. The accumulation of sigmaPBDEs in both male and female belugas showed significant exponential increase throughout the 1988-1999 time period. The time necessary for beluga to double their blubber concentration of the most prevalent PBDE congeners was no longer than 3 years. The PBDE temporal changes reported in this study are generally faster but in agreement with the trend observed in other organisms collected in Canada, such as lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) from the Great Lakes, ringed seal (Phoca hispida), and beluga whale from the Canadian Arctic. Some changes in the pattern of PBDEs in belugas were also observed during the time period investigated. The recent and important increase of PBDE levels in SLE belugas could explain the unexpected lack of statistical difference in PBDE contamination between males and females. This suggests that to date PBDEs tend to be accumulated by both male and female belugas, masking the elimination of PBDEs by females through post-natal transfer to their offspring. This study confirms that the growing use of PBDEs as flame retardants has resulted in rising contamination of Canadian aquatic environments. Additional studies are needed to assess the toxicological implications of the PBDE tissue levels found in SLE belugas.
Descriptors: environmental exposure, maternal fetal exchange, polybrominated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, whales, adipose tissue chemistry, environmental monitoring, fishes, food chain, polybrominated biphenyls analysis, quebec, sex factors, tissue distribution, water pollutants, chemical analysis.
Levin, M., B. Morsey, C. Mori, and S. Guise (2004). Specific non-coplanar PCB-mediated modulation of bottlenose dolphin and beluga whale phagocytosis upon in vitro exposure. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health. Part A 67(19): 1517-35. ISSN: 1528-7394.
Abstract: Contaminant-induced immunosuppression by organochlorines (OC), particularly polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), has been suspected as a cofactor in the deaths of thousands of marine mammals. One important innate defense mechanism is phagocytosis, the ability of cells to ingest extracellular macromolecules. The present study was aimed at characterizing the immunomodulatory potential of representative OCs on phagocytosis in bottlenose dolphins and beluga whales. The ability of peripheral blood leukocytes to engulf fluorescent microspheres was evaluated using flow cytometry. The immunomodulatory effects of three non-coplanar PCB congeners, 138, 153, and 180, one coplanar PCB, 169, and 2,3,7,8-TCDD and all possible mixtures (26) were tested upon in vitro exposure. In both species, all mixtures containing at least two non-coplanar PCBs significantly reduced both neutrophil and monocyte phagocytosis, with effects more marked in dolphins than in belugas. Coplanar OCs, on their own or when added to non-coplanar congeners, did not further modulate phagocytosis, suggesting an Ah receptor-independent mechanism. Concentration-response experiments with individual congeners further demonstrated a non-coplanar PCB-induced suppression of phagocytosis, while coplanar congeners produced no consistent effects. Our results suggest simple additive interactions of chemicals in a mixture. However, calculation of toxic equivalency (TEQs) failed to predict the experimentally induced immunomodulatory effects of OCs on dolphin and beluga phagocytosis, confirming the Ah receptor-independent nature of the effects on phagocytosis. Overall, our results suggest that non-AhR mechanisms may explain one facet of immunotoxicity (phagocytosis), something that is not captured using the TEQ approach. This is the first report demonstrating the immunomodulatory effects of OCs on dolphin and beluga phagocytosis, and the first overall demonstration of immunomodulatory effects on phagocytosis mediated specifically by non-coplanar PCBs.
Descriptors: dolphins immunology, phagocytosis drug effects, polychlorinated biphenyls adverse effects, water pollutants, chemical adverse effects, whales immunology, cell survival drug effects, drug interactions, immune tolerance drug effects, leukocytes drug effects, tetrachlorodibenzodioxin adverse effects.
Levin, M., B. Morsey, C. Mori, P.R. Nambiar, and S. De Guise (2005). PCBs and TCDD, alone and in mixtures, modulate marine mammal but not B6C3F1 mouse leukocyte phagocytosis. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health. Part A 68(8): 635-56. ISSN: 1528-7394.
Abstract: Increasing evidence has supported the general hypothesis that organochlorines (OC) can produce immunotoxic effects in marine mammals. One important innate defense mechanism is phagocytosis, the ability of cells to ingest extracellular macromolecules. The present study is aimed at characterizing the immunomodulatory potential of mixtures of OCs on phagocytosis compared to that of individual compounds in different species of marine mammals and mice, the traditional model to study mammalian immunotoxicity. The ability of peripheral blood neutrophils and monocytes to engulf fluorescent microspheres was evaluated using flow cytometry. The immunomodulatory effects of three non-coplanar polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners, 138, 153, 180, one coplanar PCB, 169, as well as 2,3,7,8-TCDD, and all possible mixtures (26) were tested upon in vitro exposure. All species were not equally sensitive to the adverse effects of OCs on either neutrophils or monocytes phagocytosis. With the exception of harbor seals, all mixtures that significantly modulated neutrophil or monocyte phagocytosis contained at least one non-coplanar PCB. Regression analysis revealed that the non-coplanar congeners, more than the coplanar congeners, explained the variability in phagocytosis. Dendrograms revealed that phylogeny could not predict immunotoxicity. The currently used toxic equivalency (TEQ) approach and the traditional mouse model both failed to predict experimentally induced immunomodulatory effects in marine mammals tested, leading us to question the reliability of both TEQs and mouse model in risk assessment of OC mixtures. Testing the relative sensitivity to immunomodulatory effects of contaminants and contaminant mixtures between different species of marine mammals may have important implications for risk assessment as well as conservation and management strategies.
Descriptors: phagocytosis drug effects, polychlorinated biphenyls pharmacology, tetrachlorodibenzodioxin pharmacology, dolphins, drug interactions, flow cytometry, leukocytes drug effects, mice, otters, phagocytosis immunology, phoca, regression analysis, species specificity.
Li, C. and C. Chou (2003). Analysis of DDE concentrations in blubber of accidentally caught and stranded cetaceans from Taiwan water areas. Taiwan Veterinary Journal 29(4): 378-385. ISSN: 1682-6485.
NAL Call Number: SF604.C54
Descriptors: DDE, DDT, organochlorine pesticides, water pollution, Cetacea, concentration, blubber.
Loughlin, T.R. (1994). Tissue hydrocarbon levels and the number of cetaceans found dead after the spill. In: Marine Mammals and the Exxon Valdez, Academic Press: San Diego, California, USA; London, England, UK, p. 359-370. ISBN: 0124561608.
Descriptors: marine ecology, ecology, environmental sciences, pathology, pollution assessment control and management, toxicology, Exxon Valdez oil spill, Gulf of Alaska.
Mackey, E.A., R. Demiralp, P.R. Becker, R.R. Greenberg, B.J. Koster, and S.A. Wise (1995). Trace element concentrations in cetacean liver tissues archived in the National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank. Science of the Total Environment 175(1): 25-41. ISSN: 0048-9697.
NAL Call Number: RA565.S365
Abstract: The National Biomonitoring Specimen Bank (NBSB), a collaborative project of several U.S. government agencies, includes marine mammal tissues collected for the Alaska Marine Mammal Tissue Archival Project (AMMTAP) and the National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank (NMMTB). Tissues were collected from 139 animals representing 13 species of marine mammals from around the U.S. Recently, concentrations for up to 30 elements in liver tissues of nine long-finned pilot whales (Globicephala melas), six harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena), and four white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhynchus acutus) from the NMMTB were measured using instrumental neutron activation analysis. Results from analyses of these tissues are presented, compared with results for liver tissues from other marine mammals from the AMMTAP, and compared with published values.
Descriptors: dolphins, liver chemistry, trace elements analysis, whales, electrolytes analysis, neutron activation analysis, statistics, tissue banks.
Marsili, L., A. Caruso, M.C. Fossi, M. Zanardelli, E. Politi, and S. Focardi (2001). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PaHs) in subcutaneous biopsies of Mediterranean cetaceans. Chemosphere 44(2): 147-54. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: The aim of the present study was to measure polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) levels in free-ranging Mediterranean cetaceans as they are likely to cause chemical stress in the organisms of this basin. Blubber samples were collected from live specimens of fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) and striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) by means of biopsies, a non-destructive biological method. Fin whales were sampled in the Ligurian Sea, whereas striped dolphins were collected in the Ligurian and the Ionian Seas. A fingerprint of 14 PAHs was obtained for both species. In whales, the median value of total PAHs was 1970 ppb fresh weight (f.w.) while median carcinogenic PAH values were 89.80 ppb f.w.; in dolphins, the median values of total and carcinogenic PAHs were 29,500 and 676.00 ppb f.w., respectively. The different PAH values between the two species can be attributed to the different positions they take in the Mediterranean food web. The sampling period significantly influenced PAH concentrations of fin whales.
Descriptors: dolphins, polycyclic hydrocarbons, aromatic pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, whales, adipose tissue chemistry, biopsy, environmental monitoring, food chain, polycyclic hydrocarbons, aromatic analysis, tissue distribution, water pollutants, chemical analysis.
Marsili, L., C. Casini, L. Marini, A. Regoli, and S. Focardi (1997). Age, growth and organochlorines (HCB, DDTs and PCBs) in Mediterranean striped dolphins Stenella coeruleoalba stranded in 1988-1994 on the coasts of Italy. Marine Ecology Progress Series 151(1-3): 273-282. ISSN: 0171-8630.
NAL Call Number: QH541.5.S3M32
Descriptors: hexachlorobenzene, polychlorinated biphenyls, brain, muscles, DDT, teeth, liver, insecticide residues, insecticides, pollutants, fat, nontarget effects, pesticides, agricultural entomology, Stenella, dolphins, Stenella coeruleoalba.
Marsili, L., A. D'Agostino, D. Bucalossi, T. Malatesta, and M.C. Fossi (2004). Theoretical models to evaluate hazard due to organochlorine compounds (OCs) in Mediterranean striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba). Chemosphere 56(8): 791-801. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: Stenella coeruleoalba, bioaccumulation, polychlorinated biphenyls, DDT pesticide, insecticide residues, hexachlorobenzene, risk assessment, water pollution, tissue distribution, body fat, ecotoxicology, equations, mathematical models, toxicity.
Marsili, L. and S. Focardi (1997). Chlorinated hydrocarbon (HCB, DDTs and PCBs) levels in cetaceans stranded along the Italian coasts: an overview. Environmental Monitoring Assessment 45(2): 129-180. ISSN: 0167-6369.
NAL Call Number: TD194.E5
Descriptors: hexachlorobenzene, ddt, dde, polychlorinated biphenyls, pollutants, water pollution, coastal water, Cetacea, marine mammals, animal tissues, chemical composition, species differences, comparisons, Italy.
Marsili, L. and S. Focardi (1996). Organochlorine levels in subcutaneous blubber biopsies of fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) and striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) from the Mediterranean Sea. Environmental Pollution 91(1): 1-9. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: polychlorinated biphenyls, ddt, derivatives, pollutants, mysticeti, Stenella coeruleoalba, concentration, sex differences, species differences, water pollution, Mediterranean Sea, sampling site.
Marsili, L., M.C. Fossi, G. Notarbartolo di Sciara, M. Zanardelli, B. Nani, S. Panigada, and S. Focardi (1998). Relationship between organochlorine contaminants and mixed function oxidase activity in skin biopsy specimens of Mediterranean fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus). Chemosphere 37(8): 1501-1510. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: balaenopteridae, ddt, insecticide residues, polychlorinated biphenyls, enzyme activity, mixed function oxidase, skin, biopsy, contamination, Mediterranean Sea, benzoapyrene monooxygenase.
Marsili, L., C. Gaggi, A. Bortolotto, L. Stanzani, A. Franchi, A. Renzoni, and E. Bacci (1995). Recalitrant organochlorine compounds in captive bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Chemosphere 31(8): 3919-3932. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: Tursiops truncatus, ddt, insecticide residues, hexachlorobenzene, fungicide residues, polychlorinated biphenyls, uptake, metabolism, food chains, trophic levels, excretion, blood, feces, respiration, food, aquaria, exhaled air.
Martineau, D., S. De Guise, M. Fournier, L. Shugart, C. Girard, A. Lagace, and P. Beland (1994). Pathology and toxicology of beluga whales from the St. Lawrence estuary, Quebec, Canada. Past, present and future. Science of the Total Environment 154(2-3): 201-215. ISSN: 0048-9697.
NAL Call Number: RA565.S365
Descriptors: digestive system, ingestion and assimilation, estuarine ecology, ecology, environmental sciences, immune system, chemical coordination and homeostasis, infection, nervous system, neural coordination, pathology, pollution assessment control and management, reproductive system, reproduction, respiratory system, respiration, toxicology, tumor biology, benzo(a)pyrene, brain, carcinogen, heavy metal, immunosuppression, inflammatory changes, liver, malignant neoplasm, milk production, organochlorinated compound, pneumonia, pollution, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon.
Martineau, D., K. Lemberger, A. Dallaire, P. Labelle, T.P. Lipscomb, P. Michel, and I. Mikaelian (2002). Cancer in wildlife, a case study: beluga from the St. Lawrence estuary, Quebec, Canada. Environmental Health Perspectives 110(3): 285-92. ISSN: 0091-6765.
Abstract: A population of approximately 650 beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) inhabits a short segment of the St. Lawrence estuary (SLE). Over 17 years (1983-1999), we have examined 129 (or 49%) of 263 SLE beluga carcasses reported stranded. The major primary causes of death were respiratory and gastrointestinal infections with metazoan parasites (22%), cancer (18%), and bacterial, viral, and protozoan infections (17%). We observed cancer in 27% of examined adult animals found dead, a percentage similar to that found in humans. The estimated annual rate (AR) of all cancer types (163/100,000 animals) is much higher than that reported for any other population of cetacean and is similar to that of humans and to that of hospitalized cats and cattle. The AR of cancer of the proximal intestine, a minimum figure of 63 per 100,000 animals, is much higher than that observed in domestic animals and humans, except in sheep in certain parts of the world, where environmental contaminants are believed to be involved in the etiology of this condition. SLE beluga and their environment are contaminated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) produced by the local aluminum smelters. The human population living in proximity of the SLE beluga habitat is affected by rates of cancer higher than those found in people in the rest of Quebec and Canada, and some of these cancers have been epidemiologically related to PAHs. Considered with the above observations, the exposure of SLE beluga to PAHs and their contamination by these compounds are consistent with the hypothesis that PAHs are involved in the etiology of cancer in these animals.
Descriptors: environmental exposure, environmental pollutants adverse effects, neoplasms etiology, neoplasms, polycyclic hydrocarbons, aromatic adverse effects, whales, cause of death, epidemiologic studies, incidence, neoplasms epidemiology, Quebec.
Notes: Comment In: Environmental Health Perspectives 2002 Oct;110(10):A562.
Martoja, R. and J.P. Berry (1981). Identification of tiemannite as a probable product of demethylation of mercury by selenium in cetaceans. A complement to the scheme of the biological cycle of mercury [detoxification]. Vie Et Milieu 30(1): 7-10. ISSN: 0240-8759.
Descriptors: mercury, detoxification, cetaceans, selenium, demethylation, tiemannite.
Language of Text: English and French summaries.
Martoja, R. and D. Viale (1977). Accumulation de granules de seleniure mercurique dans le foie d' Odontocetes (Mammiferes, Cetaces): un mecanisme possible de detoxication du methylmercure par le selenium. [Storage of mercuric selenide concretions in the liver of cetacean mammals: a possible process for detoxification of methylmercury by selenium]. Comptes Rendus Hebdomadaires Des Seances De L'Academie Des Sciences. Serie D. Sciences Naturelles 285(1): 109-112. ISSN: 0567-655X.
Descriptors: mercuric selenide, liver, cetaceans, mammals, detoxification, concentrations, methylmercury.
Language of Text: English and French summaries.
Mathieu, A., J.F. Payne, L.L. Fancey, R.M. Santella, and T.L. Young (1997). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts in beluga whales from the Arctic. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health 51(1): 1-4. ISSN: 0098-4108.
NAL Call Number: RA565.A1J6
Abstract: The Arctic is still relatively pristine in nature, but it is also vulnerable to pollution because contaminants originating from midlatitudes are transported to the Arctic by atmospheric processes, ocean currents, and rivers (Muir et al., 1992). Recognition of this fact of Arctic vulnerability has resulted in a Declaration on the Protection of the Arctic Environment by eight Arctic countries. A manifest aim of this declaration is to develop an Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program. We report here on the presence of measurable levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts, including relatively high levels in Arctic beluga (Delphinapterus leucas). These results lend support to the value of developing biological assessment programs for Arctic wildlife.
Descriptors: brain drug effects, carcinogens toxicity, DNA adducts analysis, kidney drug effects, liver drug effects, polycyclic hydrocarbons, aromatic toxicity, whales, arctic regions, DNA drug effects, DNA damage, enzyme linked immunosorbent assay.
McKenzie, C., E. Rogan, R.J. Reid, and D.E. Wells (1997). Concentrations and patterns of organic contaminants in Atlantic white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhynchus acutus) from Irish and Scottish coastal waters. Environmental Pollution 98(1): 15-27.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: pesticides, pollutants, dolphins, Cetacea, organochlorine compounds, ddt, organic compounds, statistical methods, Scotland, Ireland, water pollution, indicator organisms, British Isles, Cetacea, Europe, Great Britain, mammals, methods, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pollution, United Kingdom, Western Europe, contaminants, Lagenorhynchus acutus, delphinidae, chlorobiphenyls, principal component analysis, biological indicators.
McKinney, M.A., A. Arukwe, S. De Guise, D. Martineau, P. Beland, A. Dallaire, S. Lair, M. Lebeuf, and R.J. Letcher (2004). Characterization and profiling of hepatic cytochromes P450 and phase II xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes in beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the St. Lawrence River Estuary and the Canadian Arctic. Aquatic Toxicology (Amsterdam, Netherlands) 69(1): 35-49. ISSN: 0166-445X.
NAL Call Number: QH541.5.W3A6
Descriptors: antibodies immunology, cytochrome p 450 cyp1a1 metabolism, epoxide hydrolases metabolism, glucuronosyltransferase metabolism, whales immunology, whales metabolism, Arctic regions, Canada, chromatography, high pressure liquid, cross reactions, cytochrome p 450 cyp1a1 immunology, epoxide hydrolases immunology, glucuronosyltransferase immunology, hydroxytestosterones metabolism, isoenzymes immunology, isoenzymes metabolism, microsomes, liver enzymology, seawater, spectrophotometry.
McKinney, M.A., A. Arukwe, D. Martineau, A.D. Dallaire, P. Beland, S. de Guise, and R.J. Letcher (2004). Characterization and comparison of immunochemically determined phase I and II enzymes in hepatic microsomes of beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) from the St. Lawrence estuary and the Canadian Arctic. Marine Environmental Research 58(2-5): 534-535. ISSN: 0141-1136.
Descriptors: enzymology, biochemistry, ecology, metabolism, pollution, assessment, toxicology, laboratory techniques, immunochemistry, electrophoretic techniques, enzyme profile, metabolism, organohalogen exposure, toxicodynamics, toxicokinetics, beluga whale, Arctic.
Notes: Meeting Information: 12th International Symposium on Pollutant Responses in Marine Organisms (PRIMO 12), Safety Harbor, FL, USA, 2003.
McMillan, J. (1992). Tuna, dolphins, and pesticide use: the economics and ecology of GATT. Journal of Pesticide Reform 12(2): 20-21. ISSN: 0893-357X.
NAL Call Number: SB950.2.A1J58
Descriptors: tuna, dolphins, pesticides, marine ecology, gatt.
Meador, J.P., D. Ernest, A.A. Hohn, K. Tilbury, J. Gorzelany, G. Worthy, and J.E. Stein (1999). Comparison of elements in bottlenose dolphins stranded on the beaches of Texas and Florida in the Gulf of Mexico over a one-year period. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 36(1): 87-98. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: mercury, water pollution, aluminium, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, nickel, lead, selenium, zinc, metals, heavy metals, brain, kidneys, liver, Tursiops truncatus, dolphins, Texas, Florida, comparison.
Mendez, L., S.T. Alvarez Castaneda, B. Acosta, and A.P. Sierra Beltran (2002). Trace metals in tissues of gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus) carcasses from the Northern Pacific Mexican Coast. Marine Pollution Bulletin 44(3): 217-21. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Abstract: Samples of liver, lung, heart, muscle, and blubber tissue from the carcasses of juvenile gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) found stranded on the coast off the Sea of Cortez, Mexico were analyzed for a range of trace metals (Cu, Fe, Zn, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Cd). The highest concentrations of copper, iron, zinc, and manganese were found in liver; nickel and lead in heart, and cadmium in kidney. In all tissues analyzed, iron, zinc and copper were present in the highest concentrations; however, some whales also showed high levels of cadmium in the kidney which could be related to their diet. Elevated concentrations of copper were found only in the liver of one whale. In general, where low levels of iron were found in the liver, they were associated with poor nutrition. Lead, nickel, manganese and zinc levels in liver were within the normal range, indicating that these whales had not been exposed to high levels of these metals.
Descriptors: metals analysis, water pollutants, chemical analysis, whales metabolism, kidney chemistry, liver chemistry, Mexico, myocardium chemistry, organ specificity, seawater.
Metcalfe, C., B. Koenig, T. Metcalfe, G. Paterson, and R. Sears (2004). Intra- and inter-species differences in persistent organic contaminants in the blubber of blue whales and humpback whales from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada. Marine Environmental Research 57(4): 245-60. ISSN: 0141-1136.
Abstract: Biopsy samples of blubber from adult male and female blue whales, and from female and young-of-the-year humpback whales were collected during the summers of 1992-1999 in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada. In blue whales, concentrations of 25 PCB congeners, DDT and metabolites and several other organochlorine compounds were present at higher concentrations in the blubber of males relative to females; reflecting maternal transfer of these persistent contaminants from females into young. Sex-related differences in concentrations were not observed with less persistent contaminants, such as HCHs. In humpback whale samples, there were no significant differences in the concentrations of PCBs and organochlorine compounds in the blubber of females and calves. These data indicate that calves quickly bioaccumulate contaminants by transplacental and lactational routes to concentrations that are in equilibrium with females. In comparisons between contaminant concentrations and patterns in the blubber of female blue and humpback whales, there were no significant differences in concentrations, but the proportions of some PCB congeners, HCH isomers, and DDT and its metabolites were different in the two baleen whale species. These may reflect differences in the diet of the two species, since fish comprise a large part of the diet of humpback whales and blue whales feed exclusively on euphausiid crustaceans (i.e. krill).
Descriptors: adipose tissue chemistry, ddt analysis, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis, whales, analysis of variance, Atlantic Ocean, Canada, chromatography, gas, ddt pharmacokinetics, maternal fetal exchange, polychlorinated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, principal component analysis, species specificity.
Metcalfe, C., T. Metcalfe, S. Ray, G. Paterson, and B. Koenig (1999). Polychlorinated biphenyls and organochlorine compounds in brain, liver and muscle of beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the Arctic and St. Lawrence estuary. Marine Environmental Research 47(1): 1-15.
NAL Call Number: QH545.W3M36
Descriptors: brain, Delphinapterus leucas, muscles, organochlorine compounds, pollutants, insecticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, hch, ddt, chlordane, residues, liver, contaminants, mirex.
Mikaelian, I., C.W. Qualls Jr., S. De Guise, M.W. Whaley, and D. Martineau (1999). Bone fluoride concentrations in Beluga whales from Canada. Journal of Wildlife Diseases 35(2): 356-360. ISSN: 0090-3558.
NAL Call Number: 41.9 W64B
Descriptors: fluoride, bones, teeth, lesions, poisoning, toxicology, whales, Delphinapterus leucas, Monodontidae, Odontoceti.
Minh, T.B., M.S. Prudente, M. Watanabe, S. Tanabe, H. Nakata, N. Miyazaki, T.A. Jefferson, and A. Subramanian (2000). Recent contamination of persistent chlorinated endocrine disrupters in cetaceans from the North Pacific and Asian coastal waters. Water Science and Technology 42(7-8): 231-240. ISSN: 0273-1223.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1P7
Descriptors: coastal water, DDT, disruption, geographical distribution, hormones, marine mammals, organochlorine pesticides, persistence, pollutants, toxicity, water pollution, Cetacea.
Minh, T.B., M. Watanabe, S. Tanabe, N. Miyazaki, T.A. Jefferson, M.S. Prudente, A. Subramanian, and S. Karuppiah (2000). Widespread contamination by tris(4-chlorophenyl)methane and tris(4-chlorophenyl)methanol in cetaceans from the North Pacific and Asian coastal waters. Environmental Pollution 110(3): 459-468. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: coastal water, contamination, organochlorine compounds, Cetacea, north Pacific, Asian.
Moessner, S., I. Barudio, T.S. Spraker, G. Antonelis, G. Early, J.R. Geraci, P.R. Becker, and K. Ballschmiter (1994). Determination of HCHs, PCBs, and DDTs in brain tissues of marine mammals of different age. Fresenius' Journal of Analytical Chemistry 349(10-11): 708-716. ISSN: 0937-0633.
NAL Call Number: QD71.F7
Abstract: The concentrations of a number of polychlorinated biphenyls and chlorinated pesticides in brain tissues of marine mammals of different age and regional origin were determined by using high-resolution capillary gas chromatography and electron capture detection. Brain tissues of two neonatal and three stillborn northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus) collected in the Bering Sea, Pacific Ocean, were examined. In addition, cerebrum, cerebellum, and hypothalamus of one adult female common dolphin (Delphinus delphis) stranded on the coast of Massachusetts, Atlantic Ocean, were examined. It showed clearly that alpha-HCH was dominant in all brain tissues (90-203 ng/g extractable lipids) compared with other tissues like liver or blubber (45-61 ng/g extractable lipids). This excess of alpha-HCH in brain tissue was due to only one enantiomer, (+)-alpha-HCH, whereas in other tissues both enantiomers contributed to the alpha-HCH concentration. Comparing the overall general xenobiotic burden the HCH isomers (99-216 ng/g extractable lipids) resemble the PCB (17-105 ng/g extractable lipids) and DDT (111-171 ng/g extractable lipids) levels in brain tissues. The latter two groups exceed the HCHs in liver tissue and in blubber. On a single compound basis, the highest levels are found in brain for alpha-HCH (fur seal pups: 90-203 ng/g extractable lipids, adult dolphin: 221-305 ng/g extractable lipids), 2,2',4,4',5,5'-hexachlorobiphenyl (PCB153) (fur seal pups: 4-25 ng/g extractable lipids, adult dolphin: 260-377 ng/g extractable lipids) and 4,4'-DDE (fur seal pups: 104-164 ng/g extractable lipids, adult dolphin: 364-625 ng/g extractable lipids). The levels of alpha-HCH and 4,4'-DDE are comparable.
Descriptors: seals, delphinus, hch, polychlorinated biphenyls, residues, insecticides, chemical contamination, brain, age, agricultural chemicals, animal morphology, aromatic compounds, carnivora, central nervous system, Cetacea, contamination, dolphins, halogenated hydrocarbons, mammals, nervous system, organic halogen compounds, pesticides, Pinnipedia.
Language of Text: English summary.
Monaci, F., A. Borrel, C. Leonzio, L. Marsili, and N. Calzada (1998). Trace elements in striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) from the western Mediterranean. Environmental Pollution 99(1): 61-68.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: aquatic mammals, Mediterranean Sea, trace elements, stenella, dolphins, water pollution, mercury, copper, cadmium, selenium, zinc, aquatic animals, aquatic organisms, Cetacea, dolphins, elements, heavy metals, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, pollution, semimetals, transition elements, marine mammals, Stenella coeruleoalba.
Muir, D.C.G., C.A. Ford, B. Rosenberg, R.J. Norstrom, M. Simon, and P. Beland (1996). Persistent organochlorines in beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the St. Lawrence River estuary. I. Concentrations and patterns of specific PCBs, chlorinated pesticides and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans. Environmental Pollution 93(2): 219-234. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzofurans, pollutants, delphinapterus, fat, concentration, age differences, sex differences, water pollution, Canada.
Muir, D.C.G., K. Koczanski, B. Rosenberg, and P. Beland (1996). Persistent organochlorines in beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the St. Lawrence River estuary. II. Temporal trends, 1982-1994. Environmental Pollution 93(2): 235-245. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, pollutants, Delphinapterus leucas, fat, concentration, age, sex differences, temporal variation, trends, water pollution, Canada.
Muir, D.C.G., R. Wagemann, N.P. Grift, R.J. Norstrom, M. Simon, and J. Lien (1988). Organochlorine chemical and heavy metal contaminants in white-beaked dolphins (Lagenorhynchus albirostris) and pilot whales (Globicephala melaena) from the coast of Newfoundland, Canada. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 17(5): 613-629. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: lagenorhynchus, whales, heavy metals, organochlorine compounds, contaminants, water pollution, tissue analysis, Newfoundland.
Munson, L., N. Calzada, S. Kennedy, and T.B. Sorensen (1998). Luteinized ovarian cysts in Mediterranean striped dolphins. Journal of Wildlife Diseases 34(3): 656-60. ISSN: 0090-3558.
NAL Call Number: 41.9 W64B
Abstract: The morbillivirus epizootic during 1990 to 1992 in Mediterranean striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) off the Mediterranean coast of Spain diminished these populations directly through mortalities, and indirectly through loss of normal fecundity. High levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) also were detected in stranded animals. In addition to high numbers of abortions during the epidemic, unusual cystic structures were noted in the ovaries of several morbillivirus-infected dolphins with high PCB levels. These structures were identified as multiple luteinized cysts from their gross and histomorphologic characteristics. No morbillivirus antigens were detected in the lesions by immunohistochemistry. Because luteinized cysts occur when ovulation is impeded, either an effect of morbillivirus or PCB's on hypothalamic/pituitary function or an effect of PCB's on ovarian responsiveness are proposed as pathogenic mechanisms. These cysts may impede population recovery from the epidemic if similar cysts occurred on surviving dolphins.
Descriptors: dolphins, ovarian cysts, animal nutrition, luteinizing hormone metabolism, morbillivirus infections complications, morbillivirus infections, nutrition disorders complications, nutrition disorders, ovarian cysts etiology, ovarian cysts pathology, polychlorinated biphenyls adverse effects.
Nagakura, K., S. Arima, M. Kurihara, T. Koga, and T. Fujita (1974). Mercury content of whales. Bulletin of Tokai Regional Fisheries Research Laboratory (78): 41-46.
NAL Call Number: 414.9 J272
Descriptors: mercury, whales, content.
Language of Text: English summary.
Nielsen, J.B., F. Nielsen, P.J. Jorgensen, and P. Grandjean. (2000). Mercury, lead, cadmium and selenium in blood from pilot whales and sperm whales. Metal Ions in Biology and Medicine: Proceedings of the Sixth International Symposium, May 7, 2000-May 10, 2000, San Juan, Puerto Rico, USA, John Libbey Eurotext: Montrouge, France, Vol. 6, p. 186-188. 816 p.
NAL Call Number: QH545.M45I57 2000
Descriptors: Globicephala melas, Physeter catodon, pollutants, blood, metal pollution, concentrations in blood, metals, cadmium, lead, mercury and selenium, north east Atlantic, Denmark and Feroes, metal concentrations in blood.
Nigro, M., A. Campana, E. Lanzillotta, and R. Ferrara (2002). Mercury exposure and elimination rates in captive bottlenose dolphins. Marine Pollution Bulletin 44(10): 1071-5. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Abstract: Mercury concentrations in fish, faeces and exhaled air were investigated in order to evaluate total mercury exposure through the gut in captive bottlenose dolphin and excretion via intestine and pulmonary routes. Results showed that faeces account for elimination of 34-48% of dietary mercury; while only 0.9-1.2% of alimentary mercury is eliminated through exhaled air. The remaining 51.2-65.3% of ingested mercury, ranging approximately between 266 and 339 microg per day, is retained within the organism. The complexation of mercury with selenium, forming insoluble tiemannite granules, is discussed as an important mechanism, complementary to excretion, by which odontocetes are able to cope with elevated alimentary exposure to mercury.
Descriptors: dolphins, environmental exposure, mercury pharmacokinetics, water pollutants pharmacokinetics, digestive system, feces chemistry, fishes, food chain, food contamination, mercury analysis, respiration, tissue distribution, water pollutants analysis.
O'Hara, T.M., M.M. Krahn, D. Boyd, P.R. Becker, and L.M. Philo (1999). Organochlorine contaminant levels in Eskimo harvested bowhead whales of arctic Alaska. Journal of Wildlife Diseases 35(4): 741-52. ISSN: 0090-3558.
NAL Call Number: 41.9 W64B
Abstract: Organochlorine (OC) levels in liver and blubber of 20 bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) collected during the Eskimo subsistence harvest at Barrow (Alaska, USA) in 1992 and 1993 are presented. Liver sum DDT (lipid weight) was significantly greater in male whales than in females. Most of the organochlorines measured were at higher levels in longer (older) than in shorter (younger) males. For female bowhead whales, hexachlorobenzene and lipid levels decreased and other OC levels did not change significantly with increasing length. Most organochlorine contaminants have low concentrations in tissues of the bowhead whale compared to concentrations in tissues of other cetaceans, especially Odontocetes. Based on allowable daily intakes (ADI) levels established by the Canadian Northern Contaminants Program (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) "safe" levels of blubber to consume were calculated. Chlordane levels in bowhead whale blubber results in the most restrictive consumption amount (50 g blubber/day). We expect no adverse effects related to these organochlorine contaminants to occur in bowhead whales or in consumers of their tissues. However, investigation of low level chronic exposure effects and a more rigorous assessment of histopathology, biomarkers, and immune status in the bowhead whale would be required to conclude "no effect" with more certainty.
Descriptors: hydrocarbons, chlorinated analysis, insecticides analysis, whales metabolism, adipose tissue chemistry, Alaska, Arctic regions, chlordan analysis, chromatography, gel, chromatography, high pressure liquid, ddt analysis, food contamination analysis, heptachlor epoxide analysis, hexachlorobenzene analysis, inuits, lindane analysis, liver chemistry, mass fragmentography, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis.
O'Shea, T.J., R.L. Brownell Jr., D.R. Clark Jr., W.A. Walker, M.L. Gay, and T.G. Lamont (1980). Fish, wildlife, and estuaries [Organochlorine pollutants in small cetaceans]. Pesticides Monitoring Journal 14(2): 35-46. ISSN: 0031-6156.
Descriptors: fish, wildlife, estuaries, pollutants, cetaceans, organochlorines.
O'Shea, T.J. and R.L. Brownell Jr. (1994). Organochlorine and metal contaminants in baleen whales: a review and evaluation of conservation implications. Science of the Total Environment 154(2-3): 179-200. ISSN: 0048-9697.
NAL Call Number: RA565.S365
Descriptors: conservation, marine ecology, ecology, environmental sciences, pollution assessment control and management, reproductive system, reproduction, toxicology, ddt, environmental contamination, habitat carrying capacity, polychlorinated biphenyls.
Outridge, P.M., R. Wagemann, and R. McNeely (2000). Teeth as biomonitors of soft tissue mercury concentrations in beluga, Delphinapterus leucas. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 19(6): 1517-1522. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Descriptors: mercury, teeth, Delphinapterus leucas, Leucas, biomonitors, mercury concentrations, soft tissue.
Palmisano, F., N. Cardellicchio, and P.G. Zambonin (1995). Speciation of mercury in dolphin liver: a two-stage mechanism for the demethylation accumulation process and role of selenium. Marine Environmental Research 40(2): 109-121. ISSN: 0141-1136.
NAL Call Number: QH545.W3M36
Abstract: Liver samples of Stenella coeruleoalba dolphins, beached along the Adriatic and Ionian coasts of Apulia (southern Italy), have been analysed for their mercury, methyl mercury and selenium contents. Clear experimental evidence is provided for the existence of a two-stage mechanism for the demethylation/accumulation process of mercury in dolphin liver, as well as a threshold Hg level (ca 100 mu-g Hg/g) above which co-accumulation of selenium occurs. Only above the threshold is a 1:1 molar ratio observed between selenium and mercury fraction not released by an acid hydrolysis step at room temperature. The existence of HCl soluble inorganic compounds such as mercury selenite or selenate could be excluded. Different binding sites can be hypothesized for mercury, based on the evidence that different amounts of the metal were recovered depending on the particular physico-chemical treatment of the liver sample. The demethylation/accumulation process of mercury probably involves the formation of HgSe and selenocompounds with Se containing residues of specific proteins.
Descriptors: digestive system, ingestion and assimilation, ecology, environmental sciences, marine ecology, ecology, environmental sciences, metabolism, pollution assessment control and management, toxicology, binding site.
Parsons, E.C.M., H.M. Chan, and R. Kinoshita (1999). Trace metal and organochlorine concentrations in a pygmy Bryde's whale (Balaenoptera edeni) from the South China Sea. Marine Pollution Bulletin 38(1): 51-55.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: whales, insecticides, pesticides, heavy metals, organochlorine compounds, aldrin, chlordane, ddt, agricultural chemicals, Cetacea, elements, mammals, metallic elements, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, Balaenoptera edeni, balaenopteridae.
Pascual, S. and E. Abollo (2005). Whaleworms as a tag to map zones of heavy-metal pollution. Trends in Parasitology 21(5): 204-6. ISSN: 1471-4922.
NAL Call Number: QL757.P374
Abstract: Biological monitoring refers to the use of living organisms to evaluate environmental conditions. Of particular relevance to the health of marine ecosystems is the improvement of methodologies of biological monitoring to provide highly ecologically sensitive indices of exposure. We have shown that anisakid nematodes, a parasite group widely distributed in oceans that infects a wide range of host species, can accumulate essential and non-essential metals to levels far in excess of their host tissues. The fact that they could be used as biomarkers of trace-metal contamination in studies of environmental impact suggests a potential use as a monitor species in a marine ecosystem under anthropogenic stress because they might produce a warning or alert signal of high ecological relevance.
Descriptors: anisakis chemistry, environmental monitoring methods, metals, heavy analysis, water pollution analysis, whales parasitology, anisakis metabolism, host parasite relations, life cycle stages, metals, heavy pharmacokinetics.
Pettersson, A., B. van Bavel, M. Engwall, and B. Jimenez (2004). Polybrominated diphenylethers and methoxylated tetrabromodiphenylethers in cetaceans from the Mediterranean Sea. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 47(4): 542-550. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Abstract: Eight tetrabrominated to hexabrominated diphenylethers were present at ppb levels in liver from cetaceans found stranded on the beaches of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy. The highest concentration was found in striped dolphin (sum polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) 8133 ng/g l.w.) and the lowest concentration in bottlenose dolphin (sum PBDE 66 ng/g lipid weight (l.w.)). The predominant congener in all samples was 2,2',4,4'-tetraBDE (PBDE # 47) followed by, in decreasing order, the pentaPBDE # 99 and 100 and the hexaPBDE # 154 and 153. In 12 of the 14 analyzed samples, 3 different methoxylated PBDEs (MeO-PBDE # 1, 2, and 3) were detected at semiquantitatively calculated concentration ranges of 2 to 14 ng/g l.w.; 5 to 167 ng/g l.w.; and 7 to 628 ng/g l.w., respectively. In addition, several unidentified bromine compounds were seen when screening the samples in negative-chemical ionization (NCI) mode monitoring m/z 79 and 81, which illustrates the importance of running both electron-impact ionization and NCI when analyzing environmental samples. Electron-impact ionization is more specific for monitoring the molecular ion compared with NCI, which might overestimate the concentration of certain PBDE congeners.
Descriptors: Balaenoptera physalus, Globicephala melas, Grampus griseus, Stenella coeruleoalba, Tursiops truncatus, pollutants, tissue levels, chemical pollution, chemical factors, polybrominated and methoxylated diphenylethers, Mediterranean Sea, Italy, tissue levels of polybrominated and methoxylated diphenylethers.
Pfeiffer, C.J., L.V. Sharova, and L. Gray (2000). Functional and ultrastructural cell pathology induced by fuel oil in cultured dolphin renal cells. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 47(2): 210-7. ISSN: 0147-6513.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E29
Descriptors: dolphins physiology, fuel oils toxicity, kidney cytology, apoptosis drug effects, cell cycle drug effects, cell line, cell survival drug effects, enzyme inhibitors pharmacology, flow cytometry, kidney drug effects, kidney ultrastructure, microscopy, electron, neutral red, organelles drug effects, organelles ultrastructure, protein kinase c antagonists and inhibitors, protein kinase c metabolism, proton translocating atpases antagonists and inhibitors, proton translocating atpases metabolism.
Ponce, R.A., G.M. Egeland, J.P. Middaugh, and P.R. Becker (1998). Twenty years of trace metal analyses of marine mammals in Alaska: evaluation and summation. International Journal of Circumpolar Health 57(Suppl. 1): 576-81. ISSN: 1239-9736.
Abstract: The compilation of existing data on contaminants in the marine food chain is essential in addressing concerns regarding the magnitude of potential human exposures and in the evaluation of subsistence food safety. This paper presents a summary of studies on trace metals in tissues of Alaska marine mammals from the 1970s to the present, along with derived mean tissue trace metal concentrations. The derived mean can serve as a norm against which future monitoring results may be compared, and may be used to estimate human exposure to trace metals through the consumption of marine mammals. Additionally, the variation among studies in the reported mean tissue concentrations has been described through a derived standard deviation. Sufficient analytical and methodological details were available to derive means and standard deviations for tissues in bearded seal, bowhead whale, beluga whale, fur seal, harbor seal, Pacific walrus, and ringed seal. A high concordance between trace metal values reported in tissues (i.e., liver, kidney, muscle) was observed despite significant differences in reported sampling and analytical methodologies. Consistent with other reviews of trace metal concentrations in marine species, the standard deviation of tissue metal concentrations was generally < or = 100% of the reported mean. Significant gaps in available information remain, particularly for muscle tissues and for methylmercury, despite the considerable efforts to monitor marine mammal species in Alaska.
Descriptors: arsenic analysis, cadmium analysis, environmental monitoring statistics and numerical data, food chain, mercury analysis, selenium analysis, Alaska, environmental monitoring methods, liver chemistry, marine biology, muscle, skeletal chemistry, risk assessment, seals, earless metabolism, sensitivity and specificity, ursidae metabolism, whales metabolism.
Radding, W. and G.N. Phillips Jr. (2004). Kinetic proofreading by the cavity system of myoglobin: protection from poisoning. BioEssays News and Reviews in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology 26(4): 422-33. ISSN: 0265-9247.
NAL Call Number: QH506.B356
Descriptors: carbon monoxide toxicity, myoglobin chemistry, myoglobin physiology, biochemistry, carbon monoxide chemistry, carbon monoxide poisoning, crystallography, x ray, electron transport complex iv chemistry, heme chemistry, kinetics, ligands, models, biological, models, chemical, models, molecular, muscle cells chemistry, muscle cells metabolism, whales, xenon.
Rayne, S., M.G. Ikonomou, P.S. Ross, G.M. Ellis, and L.G. Barrett Lennard (2004). PBDEs, PBBs, and PCNs in three communities of free-ranging killer whales (Orcinus orca) from the northeastern Pacific Ocean. Environmental Science and Technology 38(16): 4293-9. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs), and polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) were quantified in blubber biopsy samples collected from free-ranging male and female killer whales (Orcinus orca) belonging to three distinct communities (southern residents, northern residents, and transients) from the northeastern Pacific Ocean. High concentrations of sigmaPBDE were observed in male southern residents (942+/-582 ng/g Iw), male and female transients (1015+/-605 and 885+/-706 ng/g Iw, respectively), and male and female northern residents (203+/-116 and 415+/-676 ng/g Iw, respectively). Because of large variation within sample groups, sigmaPBDE levels generally did not differ statistically with the exception of male northern residents, which had lower sigmaPBDE concentrations than male southern residents, male transients, and female transients, perhaps reflecting the consumption of less contaminated prey items. Male transient killer whales, which consume high trophic level prey including other cetaceans and occasionally spend time near populated areas, had sigmaPBDE concentrations approximately equal to southern residents. No significant age-related relationships were observed for sigmaPBDE concentrations. sigmaPBDE concentrations were approximately 1-3 orders of magnitude greater than those of sigmaPBB (3.0-31 ng/g Iw) and sigmaPCN (20-167 ng/g Iw) measured in a subset of samples, suggesting that PBDEs may represent a contaminant class of concern in these marine mammals.
Descriptors: food chain, naphthalenes pharmacokinetics, polybrominated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, whales, adipose tissue chemistry, diet, ethers analysis, movement, naphthalenes analysis, pacific ocean, polybrominated biphenyls analysis, tissue distribution, water pollutants, chemical analysis.
Reddy, M., S. Echols, B. Finklea, D. Busbee, J. Reif, and S. Ridgway (1998). PCBs and chlorinated pesticides in clinically healthy Tursiops truncatus: relationships between levels in blubber and blood. Marine Pollution Bulletin 36(11): 892-903.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: analytical methods, erythrocytes, Tursiops, side effects, pesticides, residues, insecticides, species, polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorine compounds, hch, ddt, statistical methods, models, fats, fungicides, agricultural chemicals, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, blood, blood cells, cells, Cetacea, dolphins, hydrocarbons, mammals, methods, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, taxa, Tursiops truncatus, nontarget effects, congeners, hexachlorobenzene, dde, regression analysis.
Reddy, M.L., J.S. Reif, A. Bachand, and S.H. Ridgway (2001). Opportunities for using Navy marine mammals to explore associations between organochlorine contaminants and unfavorable effects on reproduction. Science of the Total Environment 274(1-3): 171-82. ISSN: 0048-9697.
Abstract: The Department of Defense (DoD) has a unique marine mammal program maintained by the US Navy that includes the largest force of bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus, worldwide. In recent years, this population of cetaceans that lives in netted open water enclosures in San Diego Bay has been monitored for levels of organochlorine (OC) contaminants in blubber, blood and milk. Data generated from these studies have afforded insight into the fate and possible effects of OC contaminants in marine mammals. We now report preliminary findings on the effects of maternal OC exposure on pregnancy outcome. Blubber OC levels were compared between females whose calves survived beyond 6 months and females whose calves were stillborn or died within 12 days of birth. The mean concentration of SigmaDDT was more than 3 times as high among dolphins whose calves died as that among dolphins whose calves survived beyond 6 months (P = 0.002). Mean SigmaPCB was more than 2.5 times higher in females whose calves did not survive (P= 0.076). This population is a logical sentinel for the assessment of environmentally mediated disease. Biological tissues and fluids can be sampled on a regular basis from the dolphins for accumulation of tissue residues, facilitated by conditioned husbandry behaviors. These trained behaviors help preclude possible alterations in health measures resulting from capture stress. Animals' diets can be monitored for contaminant levels. With these data, the expertise and facilities available at the Navy laboratory and in collaboration with other experts in the field, controlled studies can be designed to monitor and assess dietary exposure, measurable immune and neurologic responses and assess reproductive and transgenerational effects of contaminants. Biomarkers can be developed to relate the health of individual animals relative to contaminant exposures. Such investigations of natural exposure and response scenarios are a logical adjunct to traditional laboratory toxicity studies.
Descriptors: dolphins, environmental monitoring methods, hydrocarbons, chlorinated, insecticides analysis, water pollutants, chemical analysis, adipose tissue chemistry, California, fetal death, government agencies, insecticides pharmacokinetics, insecticides toxicity, military medicine, milk chemistry, Pacific Ocean, pregnancy outcome, prenatal exposure delayed effects, seawater, tissue distribution, United States, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical toxicity.
Ridgway, S. and M. Reddy (1995). Residue levels of several organochlorines in Tursiops truncatus milk collected at varied stages of lactation. Marine Pollution Bulletin 30(9): 609-614.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: Tursiops, insecticides, residues, methods, side effects, organochlorine compounds, ddt, pesticides, USA, America, Cetacea, dolphins, mammals, North America, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, nontarget effects, Tursiops truncatus.
Ridoux, V., L. Lafontaine, P. Bustamante, F. Caurant, W. Dabin, C. Delcroix, S. Hassani, L. Meynier, V.P. Da Silva, S. Simonin, M. Robert, J. Spitz, and O. Van Canneyt (2004). The impact of the "Erika" oil spill on pelagic and coastal marine mammals: combining demographic, ecological, trace metals and biomarker evidences. Aquatic Living Resources 17(3): 379-387. ISSN: 0990-7440.
NAL Call Number: SH1.A8
Abstract: Oil spills can have direct effects on organisms (mortality or morbidity), indirect effects (through alteration of lower trophic levels) or be associated to exposure to trace elements contained in oil (markers). An effect of the "Erika" oil spill was investigated by spatio-temporally comparing mortality, population structures, diets and concentrations of vanadium, nickel and porphyrines in small delphinids, seals and otters from the French Atlantic coasts. These species might differ in their vulnerability to oil. Changes in mortality and its demographic structures were within previously observed ranges. The diet of the common dolphin showed an extended period of high inter-individual variability in the year 2000. Vanadium concentrations in delphinids were chronically high, but did not increase significantly after the oil spill. Porphyrins concentrations in seals and otters were low suggesting a limited exposure to contaminants, but the ratio between proto- and copro-porphyrins in otter spraints from oiled vs. unoiled sites varied significantly. No measurable effect of the "Erika" oil spill was found in dolphins and seals.
Descriptors: Lutra lutra, biochemistry, porphyrins, pollutants, vanadium, mortality, petrochemical pollution, impact, petrochemicals, oil spill, France, Brittany, oil spill impact.
Rosas, F.C.W. and K.K. Lehti (1996). Nutritional and mercury content of milk of the Amazon River dolphin, Inia geoffrensis. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. A, Comparative Physiology 115(2): 117-119.
NAL Call Number: QP1.C6
Descriptors: dolphins, milk, pollution, retinol, mercury, milk fat, milk protein, copper, iron, zinc, aluminium, magnesium, manganese, calcium, sodium, potassium, contamination, chemical composition, Brazil, Amazonas Brazil, Venezuela, alkali metals, alkaline earth metals, America, Andean region, animal protein, Brazil, carotenoids, Cetacea, elements, heavy metals, Latin America, mammals, metallic elements, milk, milk products, pigments, processed animal products, processed products, protein products, South America, terpenoids, transition elements, vitamins, Inia geoffrensis.
Ruby, S., L.T. Mendoza, M. Fournier, P. Brousseau, and V. Degas (2003). Reproductive system impairment of mice fed diets containing beluga whale blubber from the St Lawrence estuary and arctic populations. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health. Part A 66(11): 1073-85. ISSN: 1528-7394.
Abstract: The toxic potential of naturally relevant mixtures of PCBs and other organohalogens on the reproductive system of C57Bl/6 female mice was assessed. Mice were fed diets in which lipids were replaced by blubber of beluga whales from a highly contaminated population of the Saint Lawrence River, and a less contaminated population from the Arctic Ocean. Ratios of blubber from both sources were mixed in order to perform a dose-response study. Control mice were fed diets for 90 d in which fat was replaced by corn oil or beef tallow. There were no significant effects of diets on body, liver, spleen or thymus weights. Similarly ovulation occurred in all control and experimental groups. However, Graafian follicles from ovaries of mice fed contaminated diets showed abnormal development of oocytes. Cumulus granulosa cells bind normally to the oocyte prior to ovulation and are essential for sperm penetration and fertilization. These cells were absent in both Graafian follicles and ovulated oocytes in the oviduct of all groups fed contaminated diets. Oviducts of these mice revealed evidence of epithelial degeneration. These results suggest the female mouse reproductive system is sensitive to organohalogens and illustrate the toxic potential of contaminant mixtures as found in the less contaminated Arctic population.
Descriptors: adipose tissue chemistry, dietary fats toxicity, ovary drug effects, polychlorinated biphenyls toxicity, water pollutants, chemical toxicity, analysis of variance, arctic regions, diet, fresh water, mice, mice, inbred c57bl, seawater, whales.
Ruelas Inzunza, J. and F. Paez Osuna (2002). Distribution of Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb and Zn in selected tissues of juvenile whales stranded in the SE Gulf of California (Mexico). Environment International 28(4): 325-9. ISSN: 0160-4120.
NAL Call Number: TD169.E54
Abstract: With the aim of knowing the concentration and distribution of essential and nonessential metals in selected tissues of whales, analysis of Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb and Zn were carried out in kidney, liver and muscle of the gray whale Eschrichtius robustus and the sperm whale Physeter catodon. Whales were found stranded in the southeast Gulf of California. Individuals were in a juvenile stage; mean length of whales was 9.3 m for E. robustus and 7 m for P. catodon. Sequence of metal concentrations was Fe>Zn>Cu>Mn>Cd>Pb in E. robustus, and Fe>Zn>Cu>Cd>Mn>Pb in P. catodon. In E. robustus, highest concentrations of Cu, Mn, Pb and Zn (17.2, 19.6, 0.9 and 388 microg g(-1), respectively) were measured in liver, Cd (5.7 microg g(-1)) in kidney and Fe (1009 microg g(-1)) in muscle. In P. catodon, the highest levels of Cu, Fe and Pb (48.6, 5200 and 4.2 microg g(-1), respectively) were found in liver, Cd and Zn (94 and 183 microg g(-1)) in kidney and Mn (8 microg g(-1)) in muscle. Metal concentrations reported here were not considered to contribute to the stranding of specimens.
Descriptors: metals, heavy pharmacokinetics, whales, cause of death, kidney chemistry, liver chemistry, metals, heavy analysis, Mexico, mortality, muscle, skeletal chemistry, tissue distribution.
Salata, G.G., T.L. Wade, J.L. Sericano, J.W. Davis, and J.M. Brooks (1995). Analysis of Gulf of Mexico bottlenose dolphins for organochlorine pesticides and PCBS. Environmental Pollution 88(2): 167-175. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: Tursiops truncatus, organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, pollutants, concentration, animal tissues, age differences, maternal fetal exchange, Gulf of Mexico, blubber.
Saschenbrecker, P.W. (1973). Levels of DDT and PCB compounds in North Atlantic fin-back whales. Canadian Journal of Comparative Medicine 37(2): 203-206.
Descriptors: DDT, PCB, fin back whales, levels, north Atlantic.
Scanlan, P.M. (1998). The Dolphins Are Back: a Successful Quality Model for Healing the Environmental, Productivity Press: Portland, Or., 308 p. ISBN: 1563271834.
NAL Call Number: GC1212.N5S33 1998
Descriptors: marine pollution, New Jersey, Atlantic Coast, dolphins, model, environmental.
Schantz, M.M., B.J. Porter, S.A. Wise, M. Segstro, D.C.G. Muir, S. Mossner, K. Ballschmiter, and P.R. Becker (1996). Interlaboratory comparison study for PCB congeners and chlorinated pesticides in beluga whale blubber. Chemosphere 33(7): 1369-1390. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: Delphinapterus leucas, organochlorine insecticides, body fat, polychlorinated biphenyls, congeners, chemical analysis, laboratories.
Schwacke, L.H., E.O. Voit, L.J. Hansen, R.S. Wells, G.B. Mitchum, A.A. Hohn, and P.A. Fair (2002). Probabilistic risk assessment of reproductive effects of polychlorinated biphenyls on bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) from the Southeast United States Coast. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 21(12): 2752-64. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Abstract: High levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have been reported in the tissues of some species of marine mammals. The high concentrations are of concern because a growing body of experimental evidence links PCBs to deleterious effects on reproduction, endocrine homeostasis, and immune system function. Much of the recent research has focused on determining the exposure of marine mammal populations to PCBs, but very little effort has been devoted to the actual risk assessments that are needed to determine the expected impacts of the documented exposures. We describe a novel risk assessment approach that integrates measured tissue concentrations of PCBs with a surrogate dose-response relationship and leads to predictions of health risks for marine mammals as well as to the uncertainties associated with these predictions. Specifically, we use PCB tissue residue data from three populations of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), study the feasibility of published dose-response data from a surrogate species. and combine this information to estimate the risk of detrimental reproductive effects in female dolphins. Our risk analyses for dolphin populations near Beaufort (NC, USA), Sarasota (FL, USA), and Matagorda Bay (TX, USA) indicate a high likelihood that reproductive success, primarily in primiparous females, is being severely impaired by chronic exposure to PCBs. Excess risk of reproductive failure, measured in terms of stillbirth or neonatal mortality, for primiparous females was estimated as 60% (Beaufort), 79% (Sarasota), and 78% (Matagorda Bay). Females of higher parity, which have previously off-loaded a majority of their PCB burden, exhibit a much lower risk.
Descriptors: dolphins physiology, environmental pollutants adverse effects, fetal death, polychlorinated biphenyls adverse effects, reproduction drug effects, dose response relationship, drug, fetal death etiology, health status, parity, population dynamics, risk assessment, tissue distribution, United States.
Notes: Erratum In: Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 2003 Mar;22(3):689.
Senthilkumar, K., K. Kannan, R.K. Sinha, S. Tanabe, and J.P. Giesy (1999). Bioaccumulation profiles of polychlorinated biphenyl congeners and organochlorine pesticides in Ganges river dolphins. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 18(7): 1511-1520. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Descriptors: dolphins, polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorine pesticides, toxicity.
Serrano, R., F.J. Lopez, and F. Hernandez (1999). Multiresidue determination of persistent organochlorine and organophosphorus compounds in whale tissues using automated liquid chromatographic clean up and gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric detection. Journal of Chromatography. A. 855(2): 633-643.
NAL Call Number: QD272.C4J68
Descriptors: pesticide residues, organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, organophosphorus pesticides, liquid chromatography, gas chromatography, mass spectrometry.
Shibata, Y., M. Morita, and K. Fuwa (1992). Selenium and arsenic in biology: their chemical forms and biological functions. Advances in Biophysics 28: 31-80. ISSN: 0065-227X.
NAL Call Number: QH505.A1A3
Abstract: Based on the recent development of analytical methods, sensitive systems for the analysis and speciation of selenium and arsenic have been established. A palladium addition technique was developed for the accurate determination of selenium in biological samples using graphite furnace atomic absorption analysis. For the speciation of the elements, combined methods of HPLC either with ICP-AES or with ICP-MS were found to work well. These systems were applied to the elucidation of the chemical form of the elements in natural samples. Some chemical properties of the selenium-mercury complex in dolphin liver were elucidated: i.e., it was a cationic, water-soluble, low molecular weight compound containing selenium and mercury in a 1:1 molar ratio, and was shown to be different from a known selenium-mercury complex, bis(methylmercuric)selenide. The major selenium compound excreted in human urine was revealed to be other than any of those previously identified (TMSe, selenate, and selenite). TMSe, a suspected major metabolite in urine, was found, if at all, in low levels. The major water-soluble, and lipid-soluble arsenic compounds in a brown seaweed, U. pinnatifida (WAKAME), were rigorously identified, and the results were compared with other data on marine algae and animals. The major organic arsenic compounds (termed "arseno-sugars") in marine algae commonly contain 5-deoxy-5-dimethylarsinyl-ribofuranoside moiety. There are various kinds of arseno-sugar derivatives containing different side-chains attached to the anomeric position of the sugar, and the distribution of each arsenic species seems to be related to algal species. The arseno-sugar (A-XI) is present in every alga so far examined, is metabolized to lipids, and possibly may play some specific role in the algal cells. On the other hand, the major arsenic compound in fish, crustacea and molluscs has been identified as arsenobetaine, which is an arseno-analog of glycinebetaine, a very common osmo-regulator in living organisms. Arsenobetaine is not detected in marine algae while arseno-sugars are not present in marine animals except for some molluscs which contain both compounds in considerable amounts. Arsenobetaine is present in the urine of human beings who have eaten foods derived from marine animals.
Descriptors: arsenic metabolism, selenium metabolism, arsenic analysis, arsenic toxicity, chromatography, high pressure liquid methods, selenium chemistry, selenium toxicity, spectrum analysis methods, spectrum analysis, mass methods.
Silva, A.M.F. da, V.R.R. Lemes, H.H.C. Barretto, E.S. Oliveira, I.B. Alleluia de, and F.J.R. Paumgartten (2003). Polychlorinated biphenyls and organochlorine pesticides in edible fish species and dolphins from Guanabara Bay, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 70(6): 1151-1157. ISSN: 0007-4861.
NAL Call Number: RA1270.P35A1
Descriptors: contaminants, food contamination, Brazil, dolphins, fish.
Simmonds, M.P. and P.A. Johnston (1994). Whale meat: a safe and healthy food. British Food Journal 96(4): 26-31. ISSN: 0007-070X.
NAL Call Number: 389.8 B77
Abstract: During recent international debates concerning the potential resumption of commercial whaling, whale meat has frequently been promoted as a good food. Recent research into the diet of Faroe Islanders and Inuit Indians has revealed that consumption of marine mammal tissues can cause them to exceed recommended intake levels for various pollutants. Whales throughout the world have been found to accumulate high concentrations of lipophilic compounds and, while the precise health risks associated are unclear, the findings for the Faroe Islanders and Inuits may prove not to be unique, particularly if commercial whaling is resumed. Reviews available data on contaminant values and related effects.
Descriptors: whale meat, food safety, nutritive value.
Simmonds, M.P. (2003). Evaluating the threat from pollution to whales. In: W.C.G. Burns and A. Gillespie (Editors), The Future of Cetaceans in a Changing World, Transnational Publishers, Inc.: Ardsley, p. 317-338. ISBN: 1571052623.
Descriptors: Cetacea, pollutants, pollution threat, evaluation, chemical pollution, chemical factors, dioxins, whales.
Smultea, M.A. and B. Wursig (1995). Behavioral reactions of bottlenose dolphins to the Mega Borg oil spill, Gulf of Mexico 1990. Aquatic Mammals 21(3): 171-181. ISSN: 0167-5427.
Abstract: The behavior of bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus in and near the 1990 Mega Borg oil spill off Galveston, Texas, was assessed via aerial surveys from 15-18 June 1990. Opportunistic observations were made 6-9 days after the initial June 9 spill of an estimated 17.4 million liters of light-grade, Angolan crude oil. Nine dolphin groups were tracked with a video camera for a total of 5.6 hours. Three oil conditions were considered: sheen, slick, and mousse. Results indicate that bottlenose dolphins could detect slick and mousse oils but did not react to lighter sheen oil. Groups hesitated and milled upon encountering slick oil, eventually diving under or in small patches but continuing through extensive areas. These results contrast with experimental results reported for captive dolphins which consistently avoided entering slick oil. Dolphins detected and consistently avoided contact with mousse oil by swimming under or around it. Dolphin group integrity appeared to break down near mousse oil. Observations suggest that dolphins may respond to thick oil types by swimming closer together, decreasing respiration rates, and increasing dive times and rates of reorientation. The greatest concern is that bottlenose dolphins apparently detect but do not consistently avoid entering slick oil, and may not detect sheen oil, thereby increasing their vulnerability to potentially harmful exposure to oil chemicals. This study contributes to the limited data base on wild dolphin responses to oil spills and presents a methodological framework for future studies assessing the effects of oil spills on cetaceans.
Descriptors: behavior, biochemistry and molecular biophysics, marine ecology, ecology, environmental sciences, pollution assessment control and management, aerial survey, pollution.
Stein, J.E., K.L. Tilbury, J.P. Meador, J. Gorzelany, G.A.J. Worthy and M.M. Krahn (2003). Ecotoxicological investigations of bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) strandings: accumulation of persistent organic chemicals and metals. In: J.G. Vos, G.D. Bossart, M. Fournier and T.J. O'Shea (Editors), Toxicology of Marine Mammals. New Perspectives: Toxicology and the Environment, Taylor & Francis: London & New York, p. 458-488. ISBN: 0415239141.
NAL Call Number: QL713.2.T685 2003
Descriptors: Tursiops truncatus, pollutants, chemical pollution, chemical factors, north west Atlantic, USA, metals and persistent organic chemicals, accumulation.
Stoneburner, D.L. (1978). Heavy metals in tissues of stranded short-finned pilot whales. Science of the Total Environment 9(3): 293-297.
NAL Call Number: RA565.S365
Descriptors: heavy metals, short finned pilot whales, stranded, tissues.
Language of Text: English summary.
Storelli, M.M. and G.O. Marcotrigiano (2003). Levels and congener pattern of polychlorinated biphenyls in the blubber of the Mediterranean bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus. Environment International 28(7): 559-65. ISSN: 0160-4120.
NAL Call Number: TD169.E54
Abstract: Isomer specific concentrations of individual polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) including toxic non-ortho (IUPAC 77, 126, 169) and mono-ortho (105, 118, 156) coplanar congeners were determined in the blubber of nine bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) stranded along the Eastern Italian coast. The total PCB concentrations ranged from 3534 to 24375 ng/g wet wt. The PCB profile was dominated by congeners 138 and 153 collectively accounting for 55% of the total PCB concentrations. Among the most toxic congeners the order of abundance was 126>169>77. The mean total 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) equivalent of six coplanar PCBs in the blubber of bottlenose dolphins was 45596 pg/g. Non-ortho congeners contributed greater to the 2,3,7,8-TCDD toxic equivalents than mono-ortho members. Particularly, PCB 126 was the major contributor to the estimated toxic potency of PCBs in dolphins.
Descriptors: adipose tissue chemistry, dolphins, environmental pollutants pharmacokinetics, polychlorinated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, environmental monitoring, environmental pollutants analysis, Italy, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis.
Storelli, M.M. and G.O. Marcotrigiano (2002). Subcellular distribution of heavy metals in livers and kidneys of Stenella coeruleoalba and Tursiops truncatus from the Mediterranean Sea. Marine Pollution Bulletin 44(1): 74-9. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: dolphins metabolism, kidney metabolism, liver metabolism, metallothionein diagnostic use, metals, heavy pharmacokinetics, kidney chemistry, liver chemistry, Mediterranean Sea, metals, heavy analysis, organ specificity, tissue distribution.
Storelli, M.M. and G.O. Marcotrigiano (2000). Environmental contamination in bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus): relationship between levels of metals, methylmercury, and organochlorine compounds in an adult female, her neonate, and a calf. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 64(3): 333-40. ISSN: 0007-4861.
NAL Call Number: RA1270.P35A1
Descriptors: dolphins, environmental pollutants pharmacokinetics, insecticides pharmacokinetics, metals, heavy pharmacokinetics, methylmercury compounds pharmacokinetics, animals, newborn, environmental pollutants adverse effects, environmental pollutants analysis, insecticides adverse effects, insecticides analysis, maternal fetal exchange, metals, heavy adverse effects, metals, heavy analysis, methylmercury compounds adverse effects, methylmercury compounds analysis, tissue distribution.
Storelli, M.M. and G.O. Marcotrigiano (2000). Persistent organochlorine residues in Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus) from the Mediterranean Sea (Italy). Marine Pollution Bulletin 49(6): 555-558. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: organochlorine pesticides, pesticide residues, organochlorine compounds, pollutants, water pollution, pesticides, nontarget effects, agricultural entomology, dolphins, Delphinidae, arthropods.
Storelli, M.M., N. Zizzo, and G.O. Marcotrigiano (1999). Heavy metals and methylmercury in tissues of Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) and Cuvier's beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris) stranded in Italy (South Adriatic Sea). Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 63(6): 703-710. ISSN: 0007-4861.
NAL Call Number: RA1270.P35A1
Descriptors: heavy metals, mercury, pollutants, selenium, cadmium, liver, muscles, kidneys, Risso's dolphin, beaked whale.
Strandberg, B., L. Strandberg, P.A. Bergqvist, J. Falandysz, and C. Rappe (1998). Concentrations and biomagnification of 17 chlordane compounds and other organochlorines in harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) and herring from the southern Baltic Sea. Chemosphere 37(9/12): 2513-2523. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: Phocoena, herrings, chlordane, metabolites, derivatives, uptake, insecticide residues, hexachlorobenzene, ddt, dieldrin, mirex, polychlorinated biphenyls, body fat, Baltic Sea.
Notes: In the special issue: Chlorinated Dioxins and Related Compounds 1996 edited by R.E. Clement, H. Fiedler, P. Fuerst, O. Hutzinger, L.L. Needham, M. Oehme, K. Olie, C. Rappe, S.H. Safe and M. van den Berg. Meeting Information: Proceedings of an international symposium, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, August 12-16, 1996.
Struntz, W.D.J., J.R. Kucklick, M.M. Schantz, P.R. Becker, W.E. McFee, and M.K. Stolen (2004). Persistent organic pollutants in rough-toothed dolphins (Steno bredanensis) sampled during an unusual mass stranding event. Marine Pollution Bulletin 48(1-2): 164-173. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: Steno bredanensis, pollutants, mortality, mass stranding event, chemical pollution, chemical factors, Gulf of Mexico, USA, Florida, St. Joseph State Park, persistent organic pollutants, sampling during mass stranding event.
Szefer, P., J. Rokicki, K. Frelek, K. Skora, and M. Malinga (1998). Bioaccumulation of selected trace elements in lung nematodes, Pseudalius inflexus, of harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in a Polish zone of the Baltic Sea. Science of the Total Environment 220(1): 19-24. ISSN: 0048-9697.
Descriptors: cadmium, lead, copper, zinc, chromium, cobalt, nickel, manganese, iron, heavy metals, pollution, lungs, marine mammals, wild animals, contamination, water pollution, pollutants, metallic elements, lungworms, biological indicators, trace elements, metals, infections, parasites, helminths, Nematoda, Phocoena.
Szefer, P., I. Zdrojewska, J. Jensen, C. Lockyer, K. Skora, I. Kuklik, and M. Malinga (2002). Intercomparison studies on distribution and coassociations of heavy metals in liver, kidney, and muscle of harbor porpoise, Phocoena phocoena, from southern Baltic Sea and coastal waters of Denmark and Greenland. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 42(4): 508-522. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: heavy metals, distribution, liver, kidney, muscle, harbour porpoise, Baltic Sea, Denmark, Greenland.
Taddei, F., V. Scarcelli, G. Frenzilli, and M. Nigro (2001). Genotoxic hazard of pollutants in cetaceans: DNA damage and repair evaluated in the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) by the Comet Assay. Marine Pollution Bulletin 42(4): 324-8. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Abstract: Single cell gel electrophoresis (or Comet Assay) was used for evaluation of the in vitro genotoxicity of hydrogen peroxide (used as a positive control), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) (Aroclor 1254) and methyl mercury chloride, in isolated bottlenose dolphin leukocytes. Results showed that hydrogen peroxide and methyl mercury induced DNA strand breakage in a dose-dependent manner, while PCBs did not induce a clear dose-effect response at the low doses investigated. Efficiency in repairing DNA breakage induced by methyl mercury was also evaluated. Findings demonstrated that dolphin cells are characterized by higher efficiency in DNA repair when compared to human leukocytes. The observed resistance to methyl mercury toxicity in dolphins was hypothesized to be a defence strategy developed to combat high dietary exposure and compensate for limited capacity to excrete persistent pollutants.
Descriptors: DNA damage, DNA repair, dolphins genetics, dolphins physiology, methylmercury compounds toxicity, polychlorinated biphenyls toxicity, comet assay, hydrogen peroxide toxicity, oxidants toxicity, water pollutants, chemical toxicity.
Tanabe, S. (2000). Contamination of persistent organochlorines in marine mammals and birds. Environmental Science 13(2): 239-247. ISSN: 0915-0048.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: aquatic mammals, organochlorine compounds, birds, contamination, bioaccumulation, whales, Asia, enzymes, aquatic animals, aquatic organisms, Cetacea, contamination, mammals, organic halogen compounds.
Tanabe, S., P. Kumaran, H. Iwata, R. Tatsukawa, and N. Miyazaki (1996). Enantiomeric ratios of alpha-hexachlorocyclohexane in blubber of small cetaceans. Marine Pollution Bulletin 32(1): 27-31.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: side effects, chemical structure, insecticides, residues, pesticides, gas chromatography, analytical methods, metabolism, marine areas, Cetacea, hch, agricultural chemicals, analytical methods, chemicophysical properties, chromatography, mammals, pesticides, nontarget effects, phocoenoides, Phocoenoides dalli.
Tanabe, S., B. Madhusree, A.A. Ozturk, R. Tatsukawa, N. Miyazaki, E. Ozdamar, O. Aral, O. Samsun, and B. Ozturk (1997). Isomer-specific analysis of polychlorinated biphenyls in harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) from the Black Sea. Marine Pollution Bulletin 34(9): 712-720.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: Black Sea, polychlorinated biphenyls, Phocoena, toxicity, poisoning, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, hydrocarbons, marine areas, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds.
Tanabe, S., B. Madhusree, A.A. Ozturk, R. Tatsukawa, N. Miyazaki, E. Ozdamar, O. Aral, O. Samsun, and B. Ozturk (1997). Persistent organochlorine residues in harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) from the Black Sea. Marine Pollution Bulletin 34(5): 338-347.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: side effects, insecticides, pollution, Cetacea, Phocoena, mammals, saltwater fishes, halogenated hydrocarbons, ddt, hch, organochlorine compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls, fungicides, residues, pesticides, Black Sea, aquatic animals, agricultural chemicals, animals, aquatic organisms, aromatic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, fishes, hydrocarbons, mammals, marine areas, organic halogen compounds, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, nontarget effects, Phocoena Phocoena, marine fishes, dde, tde, hexachlorobenzene, marine animals.
Tanabe, S., R. Tatsukawa, K. Maruyama, and N. Miyazaki (1982). Transplacental transfer of PCBs and chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides from the pregnant striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) to her fetus. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 46(5): 1249-1254. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, translocation, foetus, biphenyl, organochlorine compounds, pesticides, agricultural chemicals, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, biological development, Cetacea, embryonic development, hydrocarbons, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, organic compounds, organic halogen compounds, physiological functions, physiology, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Tanabe, S., R. Tatsukawa, H. Tanaka, K. Maruyama, N. Miyazaki, and T. Fujiyama (1981). Distribution and total burdens of chlorinated hydrocarbons in bodies of striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba). Agricultural and Biological Chemistry 45(11): 2569-2578. ISSN: 0002-1369.
NAL Call Number: 385 AG8B
Descriptors: dolphins, organochlorine compounds, body parts, adipose tissues, food chains, anatomy, animal anatomy, animals, aquatic animals, aquatic mammals, aquatic organisms, Cetacea, feeding, ISSCAAP group b 63, ISSCAAP groups of species, mammals, nutrition, organic compounds, organic halogen compounds, tissues, vertebrates.
Language of Text: English summary.
Tassaduqe, K., M. Ali, A. Salam, M. Latif, and T. Zahra (2003). Study of the seasonal variations in the physico chemical and biological aspects of Indus river Pakistan. Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences 6(21): 1795-1801. ISSN: 1028-8880.
Abstract: The present study was carried out to investigate the seasonal variations in physico chemical and biological parameters of River Indus for a period of eleven months from November 1993 to September 1994. For this purpose five different locations, Kaloorkot, Darya Khan, Ghazi Ghat Taunsa Barrage and Chachran Sharif were selected for sampling. Water samples were collected on monthly basis and were analyzed for estimation of water temperature, temperature above surface of water, temperature above surface of bank, pH and total dissolved solids. Only Darya Khan was selected for studying planktonic life. The minimum value of temperature of water 0 degree C in winter months while the maximum temperature of water was 36.67 degree C in the month of July. The minimum pH 6.9 was recorded in the month of June, while in winter months pH goes on increasing, reaching up to 8.9 showing that in winter months pH of water increases and in summer months pH of water decreases. The minimum value of total dissolved solids was 0.3 mg l-1 in April and 12.49 in August showing an increase in total dissolved solids in winter months. During the whole study 43 different genera of phytoplankton and 17 different genera of zooplankton were observed at Darya Khan. The parameters were analyzed to investigate probable pollution at different points in River Indus to suggest ways and means to improve the feeding and conservation of Indus Dolphin ecology.
Descriptors: rivers, seasonal variation, chemicophysical properties, water quality, ph, temperature, algae, zooplankton, pakistan, aquatic communities, Asia, Asia and the Pacific, biocoenosis, chemicophysical properties, ecosystems, inland waters, land cover, natural resources, nonrenewable resources, periodicity, physiographic features, plankton, quality, South Asia, surface water, water resources.
Language of Text: English summary.
Taverner, M.R. (1975). Use of whale meal and whale solubles as dietary protein for growing pigs and their effects on accumulation of mercury in tissues. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 15(74): 363-368. ISSN: 0004-945X.
Descriptors: whale meal, solubles, dietary protein, growing pigs, mercury accumulation, tissues.
Language of Text: English summary.
Teramitsu, I., Y. Yamamoto, I. Chiba, H. Iwata, S. Tanabe, Y. Fujise, A. Kazusaka, F. Akahori, and S. Fujita (2000). Identification of novel cytochrome P450 1A genes from five marine mammal species. Aquatic Toxicology (Amsterdam, Netherlands) 51(2): 145-53. ISSN: 0166-445X.
NAL Call Number: QH541.5.W3A6
Abstract: Marine mammals, being endangered by the chronic exposure of hydrophobic environmental contaminants as an assorting result of global pollution, are especially focused as indicators for organochlorine pollution. The use of contaminant-induced xenobiotic metabolizers, particularly P450 (CYP) 1A, in marine mammals can be effective as potential biomarkers of the contaminant exposure and/or toxic effects. In this study, we identified the first marine mammalian CYPs. Six novel CYP1A cDNA fragments were cloned from the livers of marine mammal species, minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), dall's porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli), steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus), largha seal (Phoca largha), and ribbon seal (Phoca fasciata) by the method of reverse transcription/polymerase chain reaction (RT/PCR); two distinct fragments were from steller sea lion and one fragment each was obtained from the other species. Five of the fragments, one from each species, were classified in the subfamily of CYP1A1, and the other fragment cloned from steller sea lion was designated CYP1A2. Degenerate PCR primers were used to amplify the fragments from liver cDNAs. The deduced amino acid sequences of these fragment CYP1As showed identities ranging from 50.0 to 94.3% with other known vertebrate CYPs in the subfamily of CYP1A, including those from fish, chicken, and terrestrial mammals. The isolated fragments were used to construct a molecular phylogeny, along with other vertebrate CYP1A cDNAs cut down in size to the corresponding region of 265 bp in which those newly determined fragments were cloned. This phylogenetic analysis by the maximum parsimony method using the PHYLIP program suggests two distinct evolutional pathways for aquatic mammalian CYP1As, compatible to a conservative taxonomy. Pinniped genes are clustered together with dog gene, forming a carnivore group, and cetaceans form another branch. Identification of CYP1A genes in marine mammals will be an introductory step to provide new insights into the metabolic or toxicological functions of CYP1As in these animals.
Descriptors: cytochrome P 450 enzyme system genetics, porpoises physiology, seals, earless physiology, whales genetics, amino acid sequence, base sequence, conserved sequence, isoenzymes metabolism, molecular sequence data, oligonucleotides chemistry, RNA biosynthesis, RNA isolation and purification, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction.
Thornton, A. (1994). Environmental threats to whales. AWI (Animal Welfare Institute) Quarterly 43(1): 7. ISSN: 1071-1384.
NAL Call Number: HV4761.A5
Descriptors: Cetacea, whales, environmental factors, animal welfare.
Tilbury, K.L., N.G. Adams, C.A. Krone, J.P. Meador, G. Early, and U. Varanasi (1999). Organochlorines in stranded pilot whales (Globicephala melaena) from the coast of Massachusetts. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 37(1): 125-134. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Descriptors: organochlorine compounds, animal tissues, whales, water pollution.
Tilbury, K.L., J.E. Stein, C.A. Krone, R.L. Brownell Jr., S.A. Blokhin, J.L. Bolton, and D.W. Ernest (2002). Chemical contaminants in juvenile gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) from a subsistence harvest in Arctic feeding grounds. Chemosphere 47(6): 555-64. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: Gray whales are coastal migratory baleen whales that are benthic feeders. Most of their feeding takes place in the northern Pacific Ocean with opportunistic feeding taking place during their migrations and residence on the breeding grounds. The concentrations of organochlorines and trace elements were determined in tissues and stomach contents of juvenile gray whales that were taken on their Arctic feeding grounds in the western Bering Sea during a Russian subsistence harvest. These concentrations were compared to previously published data for contaminants in gray whales that stranded along the west coast of the US during their northbound migration. Feeding in coastal waters during their migrations may present a risk of exposure to toxic chemicals in some regions. The mean concentration (standard error of the mean, SEM) of sigmaPCBs [1400 (130) ng/g, lipid weight] in the blubber of juvenile subsistence whales was significantly lower than the mean level [27,000 (11,000) ng/g, lipid weight] reported previously in juvenile gray whales that stranded in waters off the west coast of the US. Aluminum in stomach contents of the subsistence whales was high compared to other marine mammal species, which is consistent with the ingestion of sediment during feeding. Furthermore, the concentrations of potentially toxic chemicals in tissues were relatively low when compared to the concentrations in tissues of other marine mammals feeding at higher trophic levels. These chemical contaminant data for the subsistence gray whales substantially increase the information available for presumably healthy animals.
Descriptors: diet, environmental pollutants pharmacokinetics, insecticides pharmacokinetics, polychlorinated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, whales, age factors, aluminum analysis, aluminum pharmacokinetics, arctic regions, environmental pollutants analysis, insecticides analysis, movement, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis, tissue distribution, water pollutants, chemical analysis.
Tilbury, K.L., J.E. Stein, J.P. Meador, C.A. Krone, and S.L. Chan (1997). Chemical contaminants in harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) from the North Atlantic Coast: tissue concentrations and intra- and inter-organ distribution. Chemosphere 34(9/10): 2159-2181. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: Phocoena, chlorinated hydrocarbons, ddt, insecticide residues, contamination, liver, body fat, water pollution, hexachlorobenzene, Northwest Atlantic.
Notes: In the special issue: Biological Environmental Specimen Banking edited by H. Emons. Meeting Information: Proceedings of an international symposium and workshop, Stockholm, Sweden, May 20-23, 1996.
Tirpenou, A.E., A.D. Tsigouri, and E.H. Gouta (1998). Residues of organohalogen compounds in various dolphin tissues. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 60(2): 216-224. ISSN: 0007-4861.
NAL Call Number: RA1270.P35A1
Descriptors: insecticide residues, DDT, DDE, nontarget effects, spleen, heart, kidneys, liver, body fat, lipids, pesticides, agricultural entomology, dolphins.
Tittlemier, S., A. Borrell, J. Duffe, P.J. Duignan, P. Fair, A. Hall, P. Hoekstra, K.M. Kovacs, M.M. Krahn, M. Lebeuf, C. Lydersen, D. Muir, T. O'Hara, M. Olsson, J. Pranschke, P. Ross, U. Siebert, G. Stern, S. Tanabe, and R. Norstrom (2002). Global distribution of halogenated dimethyl bipyrroles in marine mammal blubber. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 43(2): 244-55. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Abstract: Four halogenated dimethyl bipyrroles (HDBPs), hypothesized to be naturally produced, were quantitated in marine mammal blubber from a number of species obtained from various locations worldwide. HDBPs were found in samples from all locations studied. Concentrations of total HDBPs (SigmaHDBPs) ranged from 0.4 ng/g lipid weight in ringed seals (Phoca hispida) from the White Sea to 2,540 ng/g lipid weight in Dall's porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli) from the northwestern North Pacific Ocean. At their highest levels, SigmaHDBPs made up 11% of the total quantitated organohalogen body burden of adult male Dall's porpoises. In two beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) data subsets, it was found that males contained significantly higher concentrations of SigmaHDBPs than females. No significant effects of age or sex on SigmaHDBPs were observed in harbor seal (Phoca vitulina) and bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) data subsets. The geographical distribution of concentrations did not resemble that of the ubiquitous anthropogenic organohalogen, polychlorinated biphenyl congener CB-153. Higher concentrations of HDBPs and different patterns of congeners were observed in samples from Pacific as opposed to non-Pacific Ocean influenced environments. Concentrations of HDBPs in beluga from the Arctic and St. Lawrence River were similar. Their high abundance in north Pacific Ocean biota and widespread occurrence suggest that HDBPs undergo extensive transport from a source located primarily in the Pacific Ocean. Evidence from HDBP congener patterns indicates that both ocean currents and atmospheric transport likely play a role in the movement of HDBPs. These results imply that HDBPs and anthropogenic organohalogens have different sources and support the natural production hypothesis.
Descriptors: adipose tissue chemistry, dolphins, pyrroles pharmacokinetics, seals, earless, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, whales, Arctic regions, environmental monitoring, halogens analysis, halogens pharmacokinetics, Pacific Ocean, pyrroles analysis, water movements, water pollutants, chemical analysis.
Tomy, G.T., W. Budakowski, T. Halldorson, P.A. Helm, G.A. Stern, K. Friesen, K. Pepper, S.A. Tittlemier, and A.T. Fisk (2004). Fluorinated organic compounds in an eastern Arctic marine food web. Environmental Science and Technology 38(24): 6475-6481. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: An eastern Arctic marine food web was analyzed for perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS, C8F17SO3-), perfluorooctanoate (PFOA, C7F15COO-), perfluorooctane sulfonamide (PFOSA, C8F17SO2NH2), and N-ethylperfluorooctane sulfonamide (N-EtPFOSA, C8F17SO2NHCH2CH3) to examine the extent of bioaccumulation. PFOS was detected in all species analyzed, and mean concentrations ranged from 0.28 [plus or minus] 0.09 ng/g (arithmetic mean [plus or minus]1standard error, wet wt, whole body) in clams (Mya truncata) to 20.2 [plus or minus] 3.9 ng/g (wet wt, liver) in glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus). PFOA was detected in approximately 40% of the samples analyzed at concentrations generally smaller than those found for PFOS; the greatest concentrations were observed in zooplankton (2.6 [plus or minus] 0.3 ng/g, wet wt). N-EtPFOSA was detected in all species except redfish with mean concentrations ranging from 0.39 [plus or minus] 0.07 ng/g (wet wt) in mixed zooplankton to 92.8 [plus or minus] 41.9 ng/g (wet wt) in Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida). This is the first report of N-EtPFOSA in Arctic biota. PFOSA was only detected in livers of beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) (20.9 [plus or minus] 7.9 ng/g, wet wt) and narwhal (Monodon monoceros) (6.2 [plus or minus] 2.3 ng/g, wet wt), suggesting that N-EtPFOSA and other PFOSA-type precursors are likely present but are being biotransformed to PFOSA. A positive linear relationship was found between PFOS concentrations (wet wt) and trophic level (TL), based on [delta]15N values, (r2 = 0.51, p 0.0001) resulting in a trophic magnification factor of 3.1. TL-corrected biomagnification factor estimates for PFOS ranged from 0.4 to 9. Both results indicate that PFOS biomagnifies in the Arctic marine food web when liver concentrations of PFOS are used for seabirds and marine mammals. However, transformation of N-EtPFOSA and PFOSA and potential other perfluorinated compounds to PFOS may contribute to PFOS levels in marine mammals and may inflate estimated biomagnification values. None of the other fluorinated compounds (N-EtPFOSA, PFOSA, and PFOA) were found to have a significant relationship with TL, but BMFTL values of these compounds were often > 1, suggesting potential for these compounds to biomagnify. The presence of perfluorinated compounds in seabirds and mammals provides evidence that trophic transfer is an important exposure route of these chemicals to Arctic biota.
Descriptors: comprehensive zoology, pollutants, bioaccumulation in Arctic food web, Arctic Ocean, fluorinated organic compounds, bioaccumulation in food web.
Tornero, V., A. Borrell, A. Aguilar, R.S. Wells, J. Forcada, T.K. Rowles, and P.J. Reijnders (2005). Effect of organochlorine contaminants and individual biological traits on blubber retinoid concentrations in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Journal of Environmental Monitoring 7(2): 109-14. ISSN: 1464-0325.
Abstract: Here we assessed retinoids as biomarkers of contaminant exposure by studying whether the sex, age, lipid content and organochlorine concentrations of bottlenose dolphins induced variation in retinoid status and its deposition in blubber. Blubber samples were collected from 47 individuals of known age and gender from Sarasota Bay in June 2000 and 2001. The sample included a representative cross-section of the resident dolphin community, with ages ranging from 2 to 50 years. Organochlorine levels showed the age- and sex-related variation commonly observed in other species, with concentrations increasing in youngsters of both sexes and in adult males, and decreasing in adult females after the onset of maturity. Blubber lipid content was low in the overall population and significantly decreased with age in adult males. Retinoid blubber concentrations were comparable to other odontocete species previously studied, and were strongly determined by lipid content. As a consequence of the latter, retinoid concentration was observed to decrease with age in adult males. This effect could not be statistically dissociated from the negative correlation observed between levels of organochlorines and retinoid blubber concentration. Consequently, we could not clarify whether high organochlorine loads in this population lowered retinoid concentrations or, conversely, whether depleted lipid reserves were indeed responsible for the high organochlorine concentrations and the low retinoid levels detected in blubber. With the current knowledge, both options should be considered and investigated, with initial focus on male dolphins.
Descriptors: biological markers analysis, dolphins physiology, hydrocarbons, chlorinated pharmacology, retinoids pharmacokinetics, water pollutants, chemical pharmacology, adipose tissue chemistry, age factors, florida, hydrocarbons, chlorinated poisoning, retinoids analysis, sex factors, water pollutants, chemical poisoning.
Tornero, V., A. Borrell, J. Forcada, and A. Aguilar (2004). Tissue distribution of retinoids in common dolphins Delphinus delphis. Marine Ecology Progress Series 280: 275-283. ISSN: 0171-8630.
NAL Call Number: QH541.5.S3M32
Abstract: Exposure to organochlorines induces retinoid deficiency in mammals; hence, retinoids are potential biomarkers of the impact of these pollutants. Appropriate target tissues to monitor retinoids in cetaceans have not been properly identified because of a lack of information on the contribution of each tissue to total body retinoids. Therefore, we have addressed this issue by studying the contribution of the main body tissues to retinoids in 21 common dolphins obtained from incidental catches and in apparent good health and nutritive condition. Although concentrations in the liver were highest, those in blubber were also high and accounted for 43% of the total retinoid load of the compartments examined. As blubber can be obtained using non-invasive biopsy techniques, this tissue is proposed as a reliable indicator of retinoid status in cetaceans. However, blubber topographical variation in structure and composition requires standardization of sampling sites. Retinoid concentrations did not differ significantly between sexes or with body size for any of the tissues, but the lipid content of blubber strongly influenced these concentrations. Biopsies from healthy, free-ranging individuals are preferred to samples from stranded animals. Further research on the influence of factors (age, sex, reproductive condition, diet) that potentially affect retinoid levels is required to implement the use of retinoids as biomarkers of pollutant exposure in cetaceans.
Descriptors: Delphinus delphis, vitamins, environmental indicators, organochlorine pollution exposure indicators, chemical pollution, organochlorine pollution, chemical factors, organochlorines, north Atlantic, Spain, north west, retinoids, tissue content and distribution, organochlorine pollution exposure indicator.
Tsigouri, A.D. and E.H. Gouta (1998). Residues of organohalogen compounds in various dolphin tissues. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 60(2): 216-224. ISSN: 0007-4861.
NAL Call Number: RA1270.P35A1
Descriptors: organochlorine pesticides, pesticide residues, dolphins, tissues.
Tuerk, K.J.S., J.R. Kucklick, P.R. Becker, H.M. Stapleton, and J.E. Baker (2005). Persistent organic pollutants in two dolphin species with focus on toxaphene and polybrominated diphenyl ethers. Environmental Science and Technology 39(3): 692-698. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Assessing trends of persistent organic pollutants (POPS) in marine mammals is difficult due to age, gender, and metabolism influences on accumulation. To help elucidate these effects in dolphins, POP concentrations were determined in the Atlantic white-sided dolphin, Lagenorhynchus acutus, a pelagic delphinid inhabiting North Atlantic waters, and in the rough-toothed dolphin, Steno bredanensis, a pelagic delphinid inhabiting tropical and subtropical waters. The specific objectives of this study were to determine baseline POP concentrations in L. acutus and S. bredanensis blubber samples and to examine the effects of age, gender, and metabolism on POP concentrations in dolphin blubber. Focus was aimed at contaminants of emerging concern, specifically, toxaphene and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Samples collected from L. acutus (n = 47) stranding events in Massachusetts (19932000) and S. bredanensis samples (n = 15) were analyzed for PCBs, toxaphene, and other organic pesticides by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Age and gender influences were similar between the two species, with adult females having significantly lower POP concentrations as compared to adult males and juveniles. Mean [SIGMA]toxaphene concentrations were highest in juvenile L. acutus, 13.0 (63) [mu]g/g wet mass (11 SO), and lowest in adult female S. bredanensis, 1.49 (1.4) [mu]g/g wet mass. [SIGMA]PBDE (sum of congeners 47, 99, 100, 153, and 154) concentrations were highest in juvenile L. acutus, 2.41 (1.2) [mu]g/g wet mass, and lowest in adult female S. bredanensis, 0.51 (0.6) [mu]g/g wet mass. POP concentrations did not significantly differ between adult males and juveniles, suggesting metabolism of congeners and/or dilution with growth. PBDE concentrations in juvenile white-sided dolphins were not significantly related to collection year, suggesting that there may be a lag period for higher concentrations to be detected in pelagic marine mammals such as L. acutus or that concentrations have already peaked in this species prior to the first collection in 1993.
Descriptors: Lagenorhynchus acutus, age, biochemistry, metabolism, pollutants, blubber levels and correlates, dermis, blubber, physiological and biochemical sex differences, chemical pollution, persistent organic pollutants, north Atlantic, USA, Massachusetts, Cape Cod, persistent organic pollutant levels and correlates.
Tuerk, K.J.S., J.R. Kucklick, W.E. Mcfee, R.S. Pugh, and P.R. Becker (2005). Factors influencing persistent organic pollutant concentrations in the Atlantic white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus). Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 24(5): 1079-1087. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Abstract: Assessing the trends of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in cetaceans is difficult because of age and gender influences on accumulation. Persistent organic pollutants bioaccumulate and are poorly metabolized; hence, concentrations may increase with age in males while females reduce their POP burden through parturition and lactation. Age and gender effects on contaminant concentrations are species specific because of life history and reproductive strategies. These influences must be understood in order to elucidate and assess lifetime POP exposure. The objectives of this study were to determine baseline POP concentrations in blubber samples front the Atlantic white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus) and to investigate life history and other influences, such as metabolism, on these concentrations. Forty-seven L. acutus blubber samples collected from mass stranding events in Massachusetts, USA (1993-2000), and archived in the National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (Gaithersburg, MID, USA) were analyzed for 55 polychlorinated biphenyl congeners (PCB; 55 congeners), five polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners, and organochlorine pesticides (toxaphene, DDT and metabolites, mirex, dieldrin, chlordanes, hexachlorocyclohexanes, hexachlorobenzene, and endosulfans) by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Ages for 19 animals were determined from growth layer groups on decalcified, stained thin tooth sections. Total PCBs (Sigma PCB; sum of 55 congeners were the contaminants present in the highest concentrations in all age classes (0.5-63 mu g/g wet mass) followed by sum of DDTs (0.50-43 mu g/g wet mass), toxaphene (0.055-31 mu g/g wet mass), chlordanes (0.30-24 mu g/g wet mass), and PBDEs (0. 12-4.0 mu g/g wet mass). Body length had a greater statistical influence than age on contaminant burdens in L. acatus. Contaminant burdens decreased with length in both male and female L. acutus, suggesting metabolic elimination and/or growth dilution in males and off-loading via lactation in females.
Descriptors: toxicology, pollution assessment control and management, metabolism, marine ecology, ecology, environmental sciences, chemical coordination and homeostasis, life history, blubber, national marine mammal tissue bank.
Valdez Marquez, M., M. Lares, V. Camacho Ibar, and D. Gendron (2004). Chlorinated hydrocarbons in skin and blubber of two blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus) stranded along the Baja California coast. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 72(3): 490-495. ISSN: 0007-4861.
NAL Call Number: RA1270.P35A1
Descriptors: Balaenoptera musculus, pollutants, skin, dermis, blubber, north Pacific, Mexico, Baja California, chlorinated hydrocarbons content, blubber and skin, stranded specimens.
Van de Vijver, K.I., P.T. Hoff, K. Das, W. Van Dongen, E.L. Esmans, T. Jauniaux, J.M. Bouquegneau, R. Blust, and W. de Coen (2003). Perfluorinated chemicals infiltrate ocean waters: link between exposure levels and stable isotope ratios in marine mammals. Environmental Science and Technology 37(24): 5545-50. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: This is the first study to report on concentrations of perfluorinated organochemicals (FOCs) in marine mammals stranded along the southern North Sea coast in relation to stable nitrogen and carbon isotope ratios (delta15N and delta13C). The presence of FOCs in top predators such as marine mammals would indicate a potential biomagnification of these compounds and their widespread occurrence. Liver and kidney tissues of nine marine mammal species have been sampled. Among all the measured FOCs compounds, PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonate) was predominant in terms of concentration. The highest PFOS concentrations were found in the liver of harbor seal compared to white-beaked dolphin, harbor porpoise, gray seal, sperm whale, white-sided dolphin, striped dolphin, fin whale, and hooded seal. PFOS concentrations differed significantly between sexes and age classes in harbor porpoises. Stable isotope measurements (delta13C and delta15N) were used in this study to describe the behavior of contaminants in food webs. We found a significant (p < 0.05) linear relationship between PFOS concentrations in livers of harbor porpoises and both muscle delta13C and delta15N measurements. Harbor and gray seals and white-beaked dolphin, which displayed the highest trophic position, contained the highest PFOS levels, while offshore feeders such as sperm whales, fin whales, striped dolphin, and white-sided dolphin showed lower PFOS concentrations than inshore species.
Descriptors: alkanesulfonic acids pharmacokinetics, dolphins, environmental exposure, fluorocarbons pharmacokinetics, food chain, seals, earless, water pollutants, chemical pharmacokinetics, whales, age factors, biological markers analysis, carbon isotopes analysis, nitrogen isotopes analysis, North Sea, seawater chemistry, sex factors, tissue distribution.
Van de Vijver, K.I., P.T. Hoff, K. Das, W. Van Dongen, E.L. Esmans, U. Siebert, J.M. Bouquegneau, R. Blust, and W.M. de Coen (2004). Baseline study of perfluorochemicals in harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) from northern Europe. Marine Pollution Bulletin 48(9-10): 992-997. ISSN: 0025-326X.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: Phocoena phocoena, identification techniques, pollutants, concentrations and profiles use in populations discrimination, northern Europe, chemical pollution, perfluorochemicals, Arctic Ocean, Norway, Baltic Sea, Germany, North Sea, Denmark, north Atlantic, Iceland and Norway, perfluorochemicals baseline study.
Vetter, W., W. Jun, and G. Althoff (2003). Non-polar halogenated natural products bioaccumulated in marine samples. I. 2,3,3',4,4',5,5'-Heptachloro-1'-methyl-1,2'-bipyrrole (Q1). Chemosphere 52(2): 415-22. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: This presentation adds new spectroscopic and analytical data on the natural product Q1 that was recently identified by synthesis as 2,3,3('),4,4('),5,5(')-heptachloro-1(')-methyl-1,2(')-bipyrrole. Solid state magic angle spinning 13C NMR data of Q1 is presented as an option for structural proof. Furthermore, the UV spectrum of neat Q1 (absorption maximum at 223 nm) was recorded and, with NMR spectroscopic data, confirmed a twisted bipyrrole ring system. A quantitative standard of Q1 was prepared which allowed to correct previous concentration estimates relative to the electron capture detector response factor of trans-nonachlor. As a result, the actual Q1 response was only 0.65+/-15% of the response factor of trans-nonachlor. Therefore, actual Q1 levels are about 50% higher than the previous estimates. With this result the highest (corrected) Q1 concentration determined to date in the blubber of marine mammals from Australia is 14 mg/kg lipid. Analysis of Q1 and trans-nonachlor in specimens from the German North Sea coast suggests that harbor seals are more able to metabolize Q1 than harbor porpoises. Finally, we calculated that 79 congeners of Q1 (i.e. lower chlorinated 1(')-methyl-1,2(')-bipyrroles) are theoretically possible and present their structures.
Descriptors: hydrocarbons, chlorinated analysis, porpoises metabolism, pyrroles analysis, seals, earless metabolism, water pollutants, chemical analysis, environmental monitoring methods, environmental monitoring statistics and numerical data, food chain, hydrocarbons, chlorinated chemistry, hydrocarbons, chlorinated metabolism, magnetic resonance spectroscopy methods, mass fragmentography, models, molecular, pyrroles chemistry, pyrroles metabolism, seawater, spectrophotometry, ultraviolet, water pollutants, chemical metabolism.
Vetter, W., U. Klobes, and B. Luckas (2001). Distribution and levels of eight toxaphene congeners in different tissues of marine mammals, birds and cod livers. Chemosphere 43(4-7): 611-21. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Abstract: Levels and distribution of eight compounds of technical toxaphene (CTTs) were determined in different marine species (seals, cetaceans, birds, and fish). The eight CTTs included six commercially available and two chlorobornanes prepared in our lab. These congeners were present in all investigated samples. In agreement with earlier studies, the octachlorobornane B8-1413 (P-26) and the nonachlorobornane B9-1679 (P-50) were the most abundant congeners in most of the samples. In seal blubber, B8-1413 (P-26) and B9-1679 (P-50) contributed with up to approximately 80% (Weddell seal) to the sum of the eight CTTs. In seals from the northern hemisphere the nonachlorobornane was more abundant while in those from the southern hemisphere (Antarctic and Namibia), the octachlorobornane B8-1413 (P-26) usually appeared at higher concentrations. Depending on the species the contribution of the other congeners varied significantly. B9-1025 (P-62) ranged from 2-20%, B8-1412 was found at 4-25% with highest contribution in birds, and B8-2229 (P-44) was found at 5-15%. The remaining three congeners B7-1453, B8-1414 (P-40), and B8-1945 (P-41) were lower abundant except B8-1414 (P-40) which was found at high contribution in liver and kidney of birds. The sum of the eight CTTs ranged from 4 microg/kg to 1.4 mg/kg, depending on the species and region. In most of the seal blubber samples, PCBs and DDT were more abundant (factor 2-20) but Antarctic Weddell seals showed higher CTT levels than PCBs and DDT.
Descriptors: birds, fishes, insecticides pharmacokinetics, seals, earless, toxaphene pharmacokinetics, whales, adipose tissue chemistry, Antarctic regions, environmental monitoring, insecticides analysis, tissue distribution, toxaphene analogs and derivatives, toxaphene analysis.
Vetter, W., G. Scherer, M. Schlabach, B. Luckas, and M. Oehme (1994). An unequivocal 1 H NMR structural assignment of TOX8 and TOX9, the two most abundant toxaphene congeners in marine mammals. Fresenius' Journal of Analytical Chemistry 349(7): 552-558. ISSN: 0937-0633.
NAL Call Number: QD71.F7
Abstract: The structure of the two most abundant toxaphene congeners has unequivocally been established by 500 MHz 1 H NMR spectroscopy as 2-endo,3-exo,5-endo,6-exo,8,8,9,10,10-nonachlorobornane (TOX9) and as 2-endo,3-exo,5-endo,6-exo,8,8,10,10-octachlorobornane (TOX8). Semiempirical calculations (AM1 and PM3-MNDO) were carried out for both structures. The distance information found by nuclear Overhauser enhancement (NOE) for the protons is in agreement with the energy minimized AM1 and PM3-MNDO structures. For these definitively established NMR data for TOX8 and TOX9, together with literature data for other toxaphene isolates, a set of rules has been derived for 1 H chemical shifts in polychlorinated bornane structures. A set of rules is also proposed for assigning systematical nomenclature to NMR-derived polychlorobornane structures.
Descriptors: seals, dolphins, camphechlor, insecticides, residues, sea pollution, chemical contamination, analytical methods, agricultural chemicals, carnivora, Cetacea, contamination, mammals, pesticides, Pinnipedia, pollution, water pollution.
Language of Text: English summary.
Vetter, W., E. Scholz, C. Gaus, J.F. Muller, and D. Haynes (2001). Anthropogenic and natural organohalogen compounds in blubber of dolphins and dugongs (Dugong dugon) from northeastern Australia. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 41(2): 221-31. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Abstract: A range of organohalogen compounds (10 polychlorinated biphenyl [PCB] congeners, DDT and metabolites, chlordane-related compounds, the potential natural organochlorine compound Q1, toxaphene, hexachlorobenzene, hexachlorocyclohexanes, dieldrin, and several yet unidentified brominated compounds) were detected in the blubber of four bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), one common dolphin (Delphinus delphis), and seven dugongs (Dugong dugon), as well as in adipose tissue of a green turtle (Chelonia mydas) and a python (Morelia spilota) from northeast Queensland (Australia). The green turtle and dugongs accumulated lower organohalogen levels than the dolphins. Lower levels in dugongs were expected because this species is exclusively herbivorous. Highest PCB and DDT levels recorded in dugongs were 209 and 173 microg/kg lipids, respectively. Levels of the nonanthropogenic heptachlorinated compound Q1 (highest level in dugongs was 160 microg/kg lipids) were estimated using the ECD response factor of trans-nonachlor. Highest organohalogen levels were found in blubber of dolphins for sumDDT (575--52,500 microg/kg) and PCBs (600--25,500 microg/kg lipids). Furthermore, Q1 was a major organohalogen detected in all samples analyzed, ranging from 450--9,100 microg/kg lipids. The highest concentration of Q1 determined in this study represents the highest concentration reported to date in an environmental sample. Levels of chlordane-related compounds were also high (280--7,700 microg/kg, mainly derived from trans-nonachlor), but concentrations of hexachlorobenzene, hexachlorocyclohexanes, dieldrin, and toxaphene were relatively low and contributed little to the overall organohalogen contamination. Furthermore, a series of three major (BC-1, BC-2, and BC-3) and six minor (BC-4 through BC-9) unknown brominated compounds were observable by extracting m/z 79 and m/z 81 from the GC/ECNI-MS full scan run. Structural proposals were made for the two major recalcitrant compounds (referred to as BC-1 and BC-2). BC-2 appears to be a tetrabromo-methoxy-diphenylether (512 u) and BC-1 has 14 u (corresponding with an additional CH(2) group) more relative to BC-1. In general, the organohalogen pattern observed in blubber of dolphins was different compared to similar samples from other locations in the world, which is apparent from the fact that the four major abundant signals in the GC/ECD chromatogram of D. delphis originated from the four unknown compounds Q1, BC-1, BC-2, and BC-3.
Descriptors: ddt analysis, dolphins, dugong, environmental pollutants analysis, polychlorinated biphenyls analysis, adipose tissue chemistry, boidae, chromatography, gas, ddt pharmacokinetics, environmental exposure, environmental pollutants pharmacokinetics, halogens analysis, halogens pharmacokinetics, organic chemicals analysis, organic chemicals pharmacokinetics, polychlorinated biphenyls pharmacokinetics, tissue distribution.
Wade, T.L., L. Chambers, P.R. Gardinali, J.L. Sericano, and T.J. Jackson (1997). Toxaphene, PCB, DDT, and chlordane analysis of Beluga whale blubber. Chemosphere 34(5-7): 1351-1357. ISSN: 0045-6535.
NAL Call Number: TD172.C54
Descriptors: insecticide residues, ddt, camphechlor, polychlorinated biphenyls, body fat, Delphinapterus leucas, water pollution, Arctic Ocean, Alaska.
Notes: In the special issue: Chlorinated Dioxins, PCB and Related Compounds 1995 edited by L. Birnbaum, R. Clement, H. Fiedler, O. Hutzinger, E. Reiner and S. Safe. Meeting Information: Proceedings of an international symposium, Edmonton, Canada, August 21-25, 1995.
Wagemann, R., R. Hunt, and J.F. Klaverkamp (1984). Subcellular distribution of heavy metals in liver and kidney of a narwhal whale (Monodon monoceros): an evaluation for the presence of metallothionein. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. C, Comparative Pharmacology and Toxicology 78(2): 301-307. ISSN: 0306-4492.
Descriptors: narwhal, kidney, liver, heavy metals, distribution, metallothionein.
Wagemann, R., S. Innes, and P.R. Richard (1996). Overview and regional and temporal differences of heavy metals in Arctic whales and ringed seals in the Canadian Arctic. Science of the Total Environment 186(1-2): 41-66. ISSN: 0048-9697.
NAL Call Number: RA565.S365
Descriptors: Delphinapterus leucas, seals, water pollution, heavy metals, animal tissues, mercury, lead, cadmium, zinc, copper, selenium, Arctic Ocean, Canada, America, body parts, carnivora, Cetacea, delphinapterus, elements, heavy metals, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, North America, Pinnipedia, pollution, semimetals, transition elements, whales.
Language of Text: English summary.
Wang, A., D. Barber, and C.J. Pfeiffer (2001). Protective effects of selenium against mercury toxicity in cultured Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella plagiodon) renal cells. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 41(4): 403-9. ISSN: 0090-4341.
NAL Call Number: TD172.A7
Abstract: Marine mammals are known for their low susceptibility to mercury toxicity, and selenium may play a role in this protection against mercury intoxication. To gain insight into mechanisms by which selenium might inhibit mercury toxicity in cetacean cells, we investigated the effects of sodium selenite on cell proliferation and cell death (including apoptosis, oncosis, and necrosis) of control and mercuric chloride-treated Atlantic spotted dolphin renal cells (Sp1K cells). Concurrent exposure to 80 microM Na2SeO3 provided full protection against the decrease in cell proliferation induced by 20 microM HgCl2. Pretreatment with Na2SeO3 increased the protective effects of selenium administered later in conjunction with mercury, but pretreatment alone did not provide protection against mercury given alone. Furthermore, Na2SeO3 administered after the exposure to HgCl2 did not protect cells. These data suggest that the coexistence of Na2SeO3 and HgCl2 was essential for the protective effects of Na2SeO3 against the toxicity of HgCl2 in Sp1K cells, and may involve selenium-mercury binding. This is supported by the results of an experiment in which earlier premixed mercury and selenium solutions were less cytotoxic than freshly mixed solutions. Furthermore, HgCl2 induced apoptosis in Sp1K cells, as revealed by nuclear specific dye (7-AAD) incorporation and cell flow cytometry, and this was prevented by the concurrent exposure to Na2SeO3. Inhibition of mercury-induced apoptosis in marine mammal cells, provided by selenium, may contribute to the in vivo protection. This study is the first report that addresses the mechanism of mercury-selenium antagonism in cultured cetacean cells at the cellular level.
Descriptors: apoptosis drug effects, cell division drug effects, disinfectants toxicity, dolphins physiology, kidney drug effects, mercuric chloride toxicity, mercury toxicity, selenium pharmacology, water pollutants, chemical toxicity, cell line, flow cytometry, kidney cytology, selenium compounds pharmacology.
Wang, A. and C.J. Pfeiffer (2001). Cytopathology induced by mercuric chloride and methylmercury in cultured renal cells of the Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella plagiodon). Journal of Submicroscopic Cytology and Pathology 33(1-2): 7-16. ISSN: 1122-9497.
Abstract: High mercury concentrations have been reported in various tissues of cetaceans, but the toxicological effects of mercury on cetaceans remain unclear. In vivo study is difficult due to the endangered status of these marine mammals and co-exposure to both mercury and selenium (antagonist of mercury) in the oceanic environment. The present data are the first ultrastructural information on dolphin renal cells exposed to mercury in vitro. Multiple organelle changes were observed in Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella plagiodon) renal cells treated with mercuric chloride (HgCl2) or methylmercury chloride (MeHgCl2). Mitochondria and rough endoplasmic reticula were swollen after treatment with HgCl2 or MeHgCl. Mitochondrial dense bodies and small cytoplasmic spherical granules of high electron density were also observed after exposure to MeHgCl. Cytoplasmic vacuoles and myelin-like figures were induced by both HgCl2 and MeHgCl. Nuclear changes included karyolysis, nuclear buds, and a novel observation in mercury-treated cells, vacuolization of (micro-)nucleoli after treatment with HgCl2. These morphological changes (multiple organelle damage and nuclear budding) indicated mercury-treated dolphin renal cells underwent oncosis and necrosis, and supported earlier pathophysiologic findings of diverse toxic actions on genetic, respiratory and other cellular functions.
Descriptors: dolphins, kidney drug effects, mercuric chloride toxicity, methylmercury compounds toxicity, water pollutants, chemical toxicity, cell line, cells, cultured, kidney ultrastructure, microscopy, electron, organelles drug effects, organelles ultrastructure.
Watanabe, I., Y. Yamamoto, K. Honda, Y. Fujise, H. Kato, S. Tanabe, and R. Tatsukawa (1998). Comparison of mercury accumulation in Antarctic minke whale [Balaenoptera acutorostrata] collected in 1980-82 and 1984-86. Bulletin of the Japanese Society of Scientific Fisheries 64(1): 105-109. ISSN: 0021-5392.
Descriptors: Balaenoptera, bioaccumulation, mercury, Antarctic Ocean, age, Cetacea, contamination, elements, heavy metals, mammals, marine areas, metallic elements, whales.
Language of Text: English and Japanese summaries.
Watanabe, M., K. Kannan, A. Takahashi, B.G. Loganathan, D.K. Odell, S. Tanabe, and J.P. Giesy (2000). Polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorine pesticides, tris(4-chlorophenyl)methane, and tris(4-chlorophenyl)methanol in livers of small cetaceans stranded along Florida coastal waters, USA. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 19(6): 1566-1574. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Descriptors: organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, concentration, liver, Cetacea, coastal areas, Florida.
Weisbrod, A.V., D. Shea, M.J. Moore, and J.J. Stegeman (2001). Species, tissue and gender-related organochlorine bioaccumulation in white-sided dolphins, pilot whales and their common prey in the northwest Atlantic. Marine Environmental Research 51(1): 29-50. ISSN: 0141-1136.
NAL Call Number: QH545.W3M36
Abstract: Organochlorine concentrations were measured in white-sided dolphins, pilot whales, and their prey from the Gulf of Maine and used to identify species, tissue, and gender differences, and trophic transfer trends, in bioaccumulation. Polychlorinated biphenyl concentrations ([PCB]) in dolphin blubber (13 +/- 7.1 micrograms/g fresh wt.) were twice those in pilot whales, but pesticide concentrations (20 +/- 13 micrograms/g fresh) were similar between species. 4,4'-DDE, trans-non-achlor, Cl6(153) and Cl6(138) concentrations were highest. Skin tissues had more recalcitrant organochlorines than the internal organs. Male dolphins bioaccumulated higher concentrations of nonmetabolizable PCBs and hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) isomers, whereas pilot whales had no gender-related differences in bioaccumulation. Pilot whales, mackerel, and herring had proportionately higher concentrations of DDTs, whereas [PCB] were higher in dolphins and squid. Although these odontocetes feed at the same trophic level and store a similar suite of contaminants, dolphins bioaccumulated higher and potentially hazardous 4,4'-DDE and PCB concentrations from food in their more geographically restricted range.
Descriptors: dolphins metabolism, hydrocarbons, chlorinated, insecticides pharmacokinetics, whales metabolism, Atlantic Ocean, chromatography, gas, sex characteristics, species specificity.
Weisbrod, A.V., D. Shea, M.J. Moore, and J.J. Stegeman (2000). Bioaccumulation patterns of polychlorinated biphenyls and chlorinated pesticides in Northwest Atlantic pilot whales. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 19(3): 667-677. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Descriptors: contaminants, polychlorinated biphenyls, pesticide residues, concentration, whales, Cetacea, animal tissues, spatial distribution, bioconcentration, tissue distribution, pilot whales.
Weisbrod, A.V., D. Shea, M.J. Moore, and J.J. Stegeman (2000). Organochlorine exposure and bioaccumulation in the endangered Northwest Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) population. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 19(3): 654-666. ISSN: 0730-7268.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E58
Descriptors: nontarget effects, polychlorinated biphenyls, pesticides, zooplankton, faeces, lipids, DDT, DDE, metabolism, organochlorine pesticides, insecticide residues, agricultural entomology, whales, mammals, arthropods.
Westgate, A.J., D.C.G. Muir, D.E. Gaskin, and M.C.S. Kingsley (1997). Concentrations and accumulation patterns of organochlorine contaminants in the blubber of harbour porpoises, Phocoena phocoena, from the coast of Newfoundland, the Gulf of St Lawrence and the Bay of Fundy/Gulf of Maine. Environmental Pollution 95(1): 105-119. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Descriptors: pesticide residues, concentration, body fat, nontarget organisms, harbour porpoises, Newfoundland, Maine.
White, R.D., D. Shea, J.J. Schlezinger, M.E. Hahn, and J.J. Stegeman (2000). In vitro metabolism of polychlorinated biphenyl congeners by beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) and pilot whale (Globicephala melas) and relationship to cytochrome P450 expression. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. C, Toxicology and Pharmacology 126(3): 267-84. ISSN: 1532-0456.
NAL Call Number: QP901.C6
Abstract: We measured rates of oxidative metabolism of two tetrachlorobiphenyl (TCB) congeners by hepatic microsomes of two marine mammal species, beluga whale and pilot whale, as related to content of selected cytochrome P450 (CYP) forms. Beluga liver microsomes oxidized 3,3',4,4'-TCB at rates averaging 21 and 5 pmol/min per mg for males and females, respectively, while pilot whale samples oxidized this congener at 0.3 pmol/min per mg or less. However, rates of 3,3',4,4'-TCB metabolism correlated with immunodetected CYP1A1 protein content in liver microsomes of both species. The CYP1A inhibitor alpha-naphthoflavone inhibited 3,3',4,4'-TCB metabolism by 40% in beluga, supporting a role for a cetacean CYP1A as a catalyst of this activity. Major metabolites of 3,3',4,4'-TCB generated by beluga liver microsomes were 4-OH-3,3',4',5-TCB and 5-OH-3,3',4,4'-TCB (98% of total), similar to metabolites formed by other species CYP1A1, and suggesting a 4,5-epoxide-TCB intermediate. Liver microsomes of both species metabolized 2,2',5,5'-TCB at rates of 0.2-1.5 pmol/min per mg. Both species also expressed microsomal proteins cross-reactive with antibodies raised against some mammalian CYP2Bs (rabbit; dog), but not others (rat; scup). Whether CYP2B homologues occur and function in cetaceans is uncertain. This study demonstrates that PCBs are metabolized to aqueous-soluble products by cetacean liver enzymes, and that in beluga, rates of metabolism of 3,3',4,4'-TCB are substantially greater than those of 2,2',5,5'-TCB. These directly measured rates generally support the view that PCB metabolism plays a role in shaping the distribution patterns of PCB residues found in cetacean tissue.
Descriptors: aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylases, cytochrome p 450 enzyme system metabolism, dolphins metabolism, polychlorinated biphenyls metabolism, whales metabolism, cytochrome p 450 cyp1a1 metabolism, oxidoreductases, n demethylating metabolism.
Wolman, A.A. and A.J. Wilson (1970). Occurrence of pesticides in whales. Pesticides Monitoring Journal 4(1): 8-10.
Descriptors: whales, pesticides, occurrence.
Wood, C.M. and E.S. Van Vleet (1996). Copper, cadmium and zinc in liver, kidney and muscle tissues of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) stranded in Florida. Marine Pollution Bulletin 32(12): 886-889.
NAL Call Number: GC1000.M3
Descriptors: copper, cadmium, zinc, liver, dolphins, Florida, water pollution, toxicology, residues, wild animals, America, body parts, Cetacea, digestive system, dolphins, elements, heavy metals, mammals, metallic elements, North America, pollution, south eastern states, southern states, transition elements, USA, wildlife, Tursiops truncatus.
Woshner, V.M., T.M. O'Hara, G.R. Bratton, R.S. Suydam, and V.R. Beasley (2001). Concentrations and interactions of selected essential and non-essential elements in bowhead and beluga whales of arctic Alaska. Journal of Wildlife Diseases 37(4): 693-710. ISSN: 0090-3558.
NAL Call Number: 41.9 W64B
Abstract: In this study, we evaluated concentrations of twelve essential and non-essential elements (As, Cd, Co, Cu, Pb, Mg, Mn, Hg, Mo, Se, Ag, and Zn) in tissues of bowhead (Balaena mysticetus) and beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) whales from arctic Alaska (USA) and northwestern Canada. Tissue samples were collected between 1983 and 1997, mostly in 1995-97. The essential elements are reported to develop reference ranges for health status determination, and to help assess known or suspected interactions affecting toxicoses of cadmium (Cd) and mercury (Hg). In some tissues, Cd, Hg, and selenium (Se) were present at concentrations that have been associated with toxicoses in some domestic animals. Nevertheless, tissue levels of all elements were within ranges that have been reported previously in marine mammals. While mean Ag concentrations in beluga whale liver were relatively high (15.91 micrograms/g ww), Ag was not associated with hepatic Se levels or age, contrary to previous findings. Significant associations included: Cd with age, Zn, or Cu; Cu with age, Zn or Ag; and Hg with age, Se, Zn, or Cu. This study found hepatic Hg:Se molar ratios to be consistently lower than unity and different between species. Possible explanations for observed elemental correlations (i.e., interactions) and ancillary mechanisms of Cd and Hg detoxification are discussed.
Descriptors: metals metabolism, whales metabolism, age factors, Alaska, Arctic regions, Canada, kidney chemistry, liver chemistry, metals analysis, muscles chemistry, reference values, species specificity, tissue distribution.
Yang, J. and N. Miyazaki (2003). Moisture content in Dall's porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli) tissues: a reference base for conversion factors between dry and wet weight trace element concentrations in cetaceans. Environmental Pollution 121(3): 345-7. ISSN: 0269-7491.
NAL Call Number: QH545.A1E52
Abstract: Concentration of trace elements measured by dry weight basis has become more commonly used in recent studies on cetaceans than wet weight basis, which was used more in earlier studies. Because few authors present moisture content data in their papers, it is difficult to compare the concentrations of trace elements between various studies. Therefore, we felt that it would be useful if a reference conversion factor (CF) for tissue types could be found to convert between wet weight and dry weight data on trace element concentrations. We determined the moisture contents of 14 tissues of Dall's porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli), and then, calculated the CF values for those tissues. Because the moisture content of each tissue differs from other tissues, it is necessary to use a specific CF for each tissue rather than a general CF for several tissues. We have also found that CF values for Dall's porpoise tissues are similar to the same tissues in other cetaceans. Therefore CF values from Dall's porpoise can be reliably used to convert between wet and dry weight concentrations for other cetacean tissues as reference data.
Descriptors: body fluids, porpoises metabolism, trace elements analysis, water pollutants, chemical analysis, environmental monitoring methods, reference values.
Yoshitome, R., T. Kunito, T. Ikemoto, S. Tanabe, H. Zenke, M. Yamauchi, and N. Miyazaki (2003). Global distribution of radionuclides (137Cs and 40K) in marine mammals. Environmental Science and Technology 37(20): 4597-602. ISSN: 0013-936X.
NAL Call Number: TD420.A1E5
Abstract: Concentrations of anthropogenic radionuclides were measured in the muscle of marine mammals collected from various locations all over the world, and the global distribution of 137Cs in marine mammals was investigated. 40K was detected in all the specimens of marine mammals with no apparent difference between regions. An anthropogenic radionuclide, 137Cs, was detected in most of the species of marine mammals. With regard to the worldwide distribution of 137Cs, the highest concentration was noticed in the U.K. coast, followed by Lake Baikal, and decreases toward the southern sampling points. A strong positive correlation was observed between 137Cs levels in the muscle of marine mammals and the ambient seawater. Marine mammals feeding on fishes showed a higher concentration factor (CF) for 137Cs than those feeding on cephalopods. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the global distribution of 137Cs and the effect of feeding habits on the CF values of 137Cs in marine mammals.
Descriptors: cesium radioisotopes analysis, dolphins, potassium radioisotopes analysis, seals, earless, water pollutants, radioactive analysis, whales, cesium radioisotopes pharmacokinetics, diet, environmental monitoring, muscle, skeletal chemistry, potassium radioisotopes pharmacokinetics, seawater chemistry, tissue distribution, water pollutants, radioactive pharmacokinetics.
Zeisler, R., R. Demiralp, B.J. Koster, P.R. Becker, M. Burow, P. Ostapczuk, and S.A. Wise (1993). Determination of inorganic constituents in marine mammal tissues. Science of the Total Environment 139-140: 365-86. ISSN: 0048-9697.
NAL Call Number: RA565.S365
Abstract: Analyses of selected tissues from the Alaska Marine Mammal Tissue Archival Project (AMMTAP) have provided comprehensive information related to levels of 36 trace elements and methyl-mercury in marine mammal tissues. Liver, kidney and muscle tissues from two northern fur seals, four ringed seals and six belukha whales were analyzed. The bulk of the investigated tissues and additional tissues from a total of 65 marine mammals are banked in the AMMTAP. The results are compared to literature values for trace element concentrations in marine mammal tissues and their relevance to environmental studies is discussed.
Descriptors: environmental monitoring, environmental pollutants analysis, seals, earless, trace elements analysis, whales, alaska, kidney chemistry, liver chemistry, muscles chemistry, neutron activation analysis, organ specificity, species specificity, specimen handling, tissue banks.