Investigation of bioaccumulation and biotransformation of polybrominated diphenyl ethers, hydroxylated and methoxylated derivatives in varying trophic level freshwater fishes

• Bioaccumulation in seven fresh water fishes was higher for MeO-BDEs than OH-BDEs.
• Different internal distribution was found between PBDE and structural analogues.
• Potential biotransformation was suggested for OH- and MeO-BDEs in fish.

The concentrations and distributions of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and their hydroxylated and methoxylated derivatives (OH- and MeO-BDEs) were determined in seven representative fish species from a river in the Republic of Korea. The PBDEs and their derivatives were found to be accumulated in the internal organs of the fish to different extents. PBDEs were preferentially accumulated in the internal organs rather than muscle tissue, and especially, showed increasing accumulation tendencies with increasing bromination level in liver. The OH-BDEs and MeO-BDEs were preferentially accumulated in the liver and gastrointestinal tract, respectively. MeO-BDE concentrations were found to increase according to relative trophic level, suggesting that the PBDE derivatives can be biomagnified to a greater extent than the parent PBDEs in freshwater food webs. In a comparison with the dissolved analyte concentrations in the water that were measured by using semi-permeable membrane devices, the greater uptake of non-ortho substituted MeO-BDEs by fish was observed.