Persistent and Bioaccumulative Halogenated Natural Products in Various Tropical Reef Fish Species from the Seychelles, Western Indian Ocean

Abstract

Gas chromatography with electron capture negative ion mass spectrometry (GC/ECNI-MS) was used to quantify and compare halogenated natural products (HNPs) and selected anthropogenic persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in individual samples of 17 fish species from the Seychelles (Western Indian Ocean). The sum-HNP amounts (9.5–1100 ng/g lipid mass (lm)) were between 1 and 2 orders of magnitude higher than those of the sum of seven abundant polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners (0.2–15 ng/g lm) and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane-related compounds (DDTs) (<1.1–43 ng/g lm). Within the group of HNPs, the two tetrabrominated phenoxyanisoles (aka methoxylated diphenyl ethers, MeO-BDEs), 2′-MeO-BDE 68 ≫ 6-MeO-BDE 47, were predominant in most cases. Pearson correlation analysis showed that MeO-BDE levels were positively correlated with less abundant HNPs (2,2′-diMeO-BB 80, 2′,6-diMeO-BDE 68, and Br₆-DBP) (p < 0.01). Accordingly, HNPs, rather than PCBs and DDTs, were the predominant polyhalogenated contaminants in the current species.