Partitioning of PCBs in the muscle and reproductive tissues of paddlefish, Polyodon spathula, at the Falls of the Ohio River
- Oregon State Univ., Corvallis, OR (United States)
- Univ. of Louisville, KY (United States)
The paddlefish, Polyodon spathula, is a primitive fish characterized by a predominantly cartilaginous skeleton, a virtually scaleless body, and a rostrum or paddle nearly one-third of the body length. At the Falls of the Ohio River near Louisville, KY, paddlefish are harvested for their roe used to produce domestic caviar. The persistence of this small but intensive fishery for the roe of female paddlefish may be slowing or even reversing the recovery of populations in the Falls area of the Ohio River. Residues of toxic substances harmful to humans are being detected in many fishes in the Ohio River. Organochlorine pollutants such as chlordane and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are being detected at levels as high as those of 10 yr ago. Recent data from studies conducted in the Missouri River on PCB levels in the tissues of the shovelnose sturgeon, a species closely related to the paddlefish, indicate that the concentration of PCBs in sturgeon roe is several times that of concentrations in flesh. This study examines the PCB content of the roe of paddlefish at the location of a commercial fishery. The study investigated the partitioning of PCBs into the muscle and reproductive tissues of paddlefish, considered possible correlations between PCB concentration and age and percent lipid, and looked at the existence of any differences in mean PCB concentrations between male and female paddlefish. 17 refs., 1 fig., 1 tab.
- OSTI ID:
- 6517671
- Journal Information:
- Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology; (United States), Vol. 49:3; ISSN 0007-4861
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
FISHES
ORGANS
SEX
POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
TISSUE DISTRIBUTION
AGE GROUPS
MUSCLES
OHIO RIVER
ANIMALS
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
AROMATICS
BODY
CHLORINATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
DISTRIBUTION
HALOGENATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
ORGANIC CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
RIVERS
STREAMS
SURFACE WATERS
VERTEBRATES
560300* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology