Occurrence and risk assessment of organophosphate esters in global aquatic products

• Published in: Water research (Oxford) Vol. 240; p. 120083
• Main Authors: Gu, Luyao, Hu, Boyuan, Fu, Yilin, Zhou, Wei, Li, Xiaomin, Huang, Kai, Zhang, Qun, Fu, Jie, Zhang, Haiyan, Zhang, Aiqian, Fu, Jianjie, Jiang, Guibin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 15.07.2023
• Subjects: Aquatic products; Bioaccumulation; Exposure risks; Monte Carlo simulations; Organophosphate esters; Trophic transfer; Aquatic products; Organophosphate esters; Monte Carlo simulations; Exposure risks; Bioaccumulation; Trophic transfer
• ISSN: 0043-1354; 1879-2448
• DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2023.120083

•The mean levels of OPEs in aquatic products were higher in Asia than those in other areas.•Chlorinated OPEs generally showed accumulation predominance in aquatic products.•Some OPEs could be bioaccumulated in aquatic products, and biomagnified through aquatic food webs.•Monte Carlo simulations revealed relative low exposure risks of residents, based on the consumption of aquatic products.•Children, adolescents, and fishermen, as sensitive and special groups, would face higher health risks than other groups. Organophosphate esters (OPEs), as an important class of new pollutants, have been pervasively detected in global aquatic products, arousing widespread public concern due to their potential bioaccumulative behavior and consequent risks. With the continuous improvement of living standards of citizens, there have been constant increment of the proportion of aquatic products in diets of people. The levels of OPEs exposed to residents may also be rising due to the augmented consumption of aquatic products, posing potential hazards on human health, especially for people in coastal areas. The present study integrated the concentrations, profiles, bioaccumulation, and trophic transfer of OPEs in global aquatic products, including Mollusca, Crustacea, and fish, evaluated health risks of OPEs through aquatic products in daily diets by Mont Carol Simulation (MCS), and found Asia has been the most polluted area in terms of the concentration of OPEs in aquatic products, and would have been increasingly polluted. Among all studied OPEs, chlorinated OPEs generally showed accumulation predominance. It is worth noting that some OPEs were found bioaccumulated and/or biomagnified in aquatic ecosystems. Though MCS revealed relative low exposure risks of residents, sensitive and special groups such as children, adolescents, and fishermen may face more serious health risks than the average residents. Finally, knowledge gaps and recommendations for future research are discussed encouraging more long-term and systematic global monitoring, comprehensive studies of novel OPEs and OPEs metabolites, and more toxicological studies to completely evaluate the potential risks of OPEs. [Display omitted]