Identification and occurrence of TBBPA and its debromination and O-methylation transformation products in sediment, fish and whelks from a typical e-waste dismantling site

Yan Yang; Mengdi Zhang; Yuan Gao; Haojia Chen; Juntao Cui; Yingxin Yu; Shengtao Ma

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155249

Identification and occurrence of TBBPA and its debromination and O-methylation transformation products in sediment, fish and whelks from a typical e-waste dismantling site

Sci Total Environ. 2022 Aug 10:833:155249. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155249. Epub 2022 Apr 12.

Authors

Yan Yang¹, Mengdi Zhang², Yuan Gao², Haojia Chen³, Juntao Cui⁴, Yingxin Yu², Shengtao Ma⁵

Affiliations

¹ Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Joint Laboratory for Contaminants Exposure and Health, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Catalysis and Health Risk Control, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Institute of Environmental Health and Pollution Control, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China; Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Shantou 515041, Guangdong, China; Synergy Innovation Institute of GDUT, Shantou 515041, China.
² Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Joint Laboratory for Contaminants Exposure and Health, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Catalysis and Health Risk Control, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Institute of Environmental Health and Pollution Control, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China.
³ Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Shantou 515041, Guangdong, China; Synergy Innovation Institute of GDUT, Shantou 515041, China.
⁴ School of Chemical Engineering and Light Industry, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China.
⁵ Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Joint Laboratory for Contaminants Exposure and Health, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Catalysis and Health Risk Control, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Institute of Environmental Health and Pollution Control, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China; Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Shantou 515041, Guangdong, China; Synergy Innovation Institute of GDUT, Shantou 515041, China. Electronic address: mast@gdut.edu.cn.

PMID: 35427616
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155249

Abstract

Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) and its debromination (∑BBPA) and O-methylation (∑MeO-TBBPA) products were widely detected in matched sediments, fish, and whelks samples collected from a typical electronic waste (e-waste) dismantling site in Southern China, with concentrations ranging from 19.8 to 1.52 × 10⁴, 8.05 to 1.84 × 10³, and 0.08 to 11.9 ng/g dry weight in sediments, and 6.96 to 1.97 × 10⁵, 3.84 to 7.07 × 10³, and 3.42 to 472 ng/g lipid in biotas, for TBBPA, ∑BBPA, and ∑MeO-TBBPA, respectively. Significantly higher concentrations of these targets were found in samples collected close to the e-waste site, indicating their potential e-waste sources. Tri-BBPA was the most abundant debromination products in sediments, whereas diMeO-TBBPA was the dominant O-methylation product in biotas. Relatively higher levels of diMeO-TBBPA found in liver and kidneys, suggesting these chemicals might be mainly derived from the in vivo biotransformation. Furthermore, significantly higher biota-sediment accumulation factor values were found for diMeO-TBBPA than these of TBBPA, indicating that O-methylation would increases their accumulation in aquatic organisms. Our study provides insights into the accumulation and biotransformation of TBBPA in aquatic systems. Further studies should pay attention to the occurrence as well as potential health risks of these transformation products.

Keywords: Debromination; Fish; O-methylation; Sediment; TBBPA; Whelk.

MeSH terms

Animals
Electronic Waste*
Fishes / metabolism
Flame Retardants* / metabolism
Methylation
Polybrominated Biphenyls* / analysis

Substances

Flame Retardants
Polybrominated Biphenyls
tetrabromobisphenol A