Plasma to egg conversion factor for evaluating polychlorinated biphenyl and DDT exposures in great horned owls and bald eagles.

The benefits of nondestructive sampling techniques, such as plasma sampling, to directly measure contaminant exposure levels in at-risk or protected raptor populations are many. However, such assays are generally inconsistent with the most certain source of toxicity reference values, which are based on feeding studies and quantified as dietary or "in ovo" (egg-based) concentrations. An accurate conversion factor to translate nondestructive plasma-based contaminant concentrations to comparable egg-based concentrations will prove valuable to risk assessors investigating the potential effects of chemical exposures to raptors.

Risk assessment of great horned owls (Bubo virginianus) exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls and DDT along the Kalamazoo River, Michigan, USA.

The great horned owl (GHO; Bubo virginianus) was used in a multiple lines of evidence study of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and p,p'-dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) exposures at the Kalamazoo River Superfund Site (KRSS), Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA. The study examined risks from total PCBs, including 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin equivalents (TEQWorld Health Organization [WHO]-Avian Toxicity Equivalency Factor [TEF]), and total DDTs (sum of DDT, dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene [DDE], and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane [DDD]; sigmaDDT) by measuring concentrations in eggs and nestling blood plasma in two regions of the KRSS (upper, lower) and an upstream reference area (RA). An ecological risk assessment compared concentrations of the contaminants of concern (COCs) in eggs or plasma to toxicity reference values.

Perfluorinated compounds in streams of the Shihwa Industrial Zone and Lake Shihwa, South Korea.

Concentrations of perfluorinated alkyl compounds (PFAs), including perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorohexanesulfonate, perfluorobutanesulfonate, perfluorooctanesulfonamide, perfluorodecanoate, perfluorononanoic acid, perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), perfluoroheptanoate, and perfluorohexanoate, were measured in the streams of the Shihwa and Banweol industrial areas on the west coast of South Korea as well as the adjacent Lake Shihwa (an artificial lake) and Gyeonggi Bay. Perfluorinated alkyl compounds were concentrated from water using solid-phase extraction and were identified and quantified by liquid chromatography/ triple-quadrapole tandem mass spectrometry. Of the PFAs measured, PFOS and PFOA occurred at the greatest concentrations.

Concentrations and accumulation profiles of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in aquatic tissues, and ambient air from South Korea.

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDDs/DFs), including 2378-substituted isomers were present in samples of shellfish and fish, and ambient air collected from Masan Bay, and Masan City, South Korea. Total concentrations of PCDDs/DFs in mussel and clam were 750 pg g(-1), lipid weight (lw), and 3418 pg g(-1), lw, respectively. Total concentrations of PCDDs/DFs in mullet, gizzard and flounder were 52, 82, and 122 pg g(-1), lw, respectively.

Concentrations and profiles of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in soils from Korea.

Soil samples were collected from Changwon and Masan Cities, Korea, and analyzed for polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDDs/DFs). Nearly all tetra- through octachlorinated PCDDs/DFs including the 17 2,3,7,8-substituted PCDDs/DFs were detected in all samples. Total concentrations of PCDDs/DFs and of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (TeCDD) equivalents (TEGs) in soils ranged from 35 to 121,400 pg/g, dry weight, and from 0.

Sources and distribution of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in sediments from Masan Bay, Korea.

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDDs/DFs) were measured in sediments collected from Masan Bay, Korea. Almost all tetra- through octachlorinated PCDDs/DFs were identified, including the 17 2,3,7,8-substituted PCDDs/DFs. Total concentrations of PCDDs/DFs in sediments ranged from 102 to 6,493 pg/g dry weight.