Journal article
Impacts of divalent cations (Mg2+ and Ca2+) on PFAS bioaccumulation in freshwater macroinvertebrates representing different foraging modes
Environmental pollution (1987), v 331(Pt 2), 121938
15 Aug 2023
PMID: 37263566
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have extensively contaminated freshwater aquatic ecosystems where they can be transported in water and partition to sediment and biota. In this paper, three freshwater benthic macroinvertebrates with different foraging modes were exposed to environmentally relevant concentrations of eight perfluoroalkyl carboxylates (PFCA), three perfluoroalkyl sulfonates (PFSA), and three fluorotelomer sulfonates (FTS) at varying divalent cation concentrations of magnesium (Mg2+) and calcium (Ca2+). Divalent cations can impact PFAS partitioning to solids, especially to sediments, at higher concentrations. Sediment dwelling worms (Lumbriculus variegatus), epibenthic grazing snails (Physella acuta), and sediment-dwelling filter-feeding bivalves (Elliptio complanata) were selected due to their unique foraging modes. Microcosms were composed of synthetic sediment, culture water, macroinvertebrates, and PFAS and consisted of a 28-day exposure period. L. variegatus had significantly higher PFAS bioaccumulation than P. acuta and E. complanata, likely due to higher levels of interactions with and ingestion of the contaminated sediment. “High Mg2+” (7.5 mM Mg2+) and “High Ca2+” (7.5 mM Ca2+) conditions generally had statistically higher bioaccumulation factors (BAF) than the “Reference Condition” (0.2 mM Ca2+ and 0.2 mM Mg2+) for PFAS with perfluorinated chain lengths greater than eight carbons. Long-chain PFAS dominated the PFAS profiles of the macroinvertebrates for all groups of compounds studied (PFCA, PFSA, and FTS). These results indicate that the study organism has the greatest impact on bioaccumulation, although divalent cation concentration had observable impacts between organisms depending on the environmental conditions. Elevated cation concentrations in the microcosms led to significantly greater bioaccumulation in the test organisms compared to the experimental reference conditions for long-chain PFAS.
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•Higher divalent cation concentrations increase PFAS partitioning to sediment.•Higher divalent cation concentrations do not necessarily reduce PFAS bioavailability.•Type of organism had a greater impact on bioaccumulation than cation concentration.•PFAS profiles in tissue are variable across macroinvertebrate species.
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Details
- Title
- Impacts of divalent cations (Mg2+ and Ca2+) on PFAS bioaccumulation in freshwater macroinvertebrates representing different foraging modes
- Creators
- Asa J. Lewis - Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, Drexel University, 3100 Market St., Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USAXiaoyan Yun - Temple UniversityMax G. Lewis - Temple UniversityErica R. McKenzie - Temple UniversityDaniel E. Spooner - George Mason UniversityMarie J. Kurz - Drexel University, Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel UniversityRominder Suri - Temple UniversityChristopher M. Sales - Drexel University, C. and J. Nyheim Plasma Institute
- Publication Details
- Environmental pollution (1987), v 331(Pt 2), 121938
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- C. and J. Nyheim Plasma Institute; Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering; Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:001016539600001
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-85161300903
- Other Identifier
- 991021860620504721
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Environmental Sciences