PCB bioaccumulation in three mullet species - a comparison study

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are lipophilic contaminants that tend to accumulate in organisms. PCBs were detected in Chelon labrosus, Liza aurata and Liza ramada, along different age groups. L. ramada presented the highest concentration, and it increased with age, whereas C. labrosus and L. aurata concentration remained constant. L. ramada high concentration can be attributed to its ecological niche, since this species is able to accumulate PCBs along its different age groups even in low environmental contamination conditions. PCBs 101, 118, 138, 149, 153, 170 and 180 were the congeners that more contributed to these species contamination, being PCB 138 and 153 the congeners with higher concentration. Mullets are edible in many countries, being important in fisheries and aquaculture. L. ramada is the most common mullet for capture and human consumption. All species presented concentrations below the regulation limit establish by the European Union, and therefore safe for human consumption.The authors wish to thank all the colleagues that helped in the field and laboratory work. This work was supported by FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia) through a PhD grant attributed to J. Baptista (SFRH/ BD/ 48262/ 2008), funded by Programa Operacional Potencial Humano of QREN Portugal and by the Portuguese budget through the Ministry of Science Technology and Education. P. Pato acknowledges a postdoctoral fellowship from FCT (SFRH/ BPD/ 35068/ 2007). The authors, also, wish to thank the reviewers for their comments, which helped improve the manuscript.publishe