Multi‐residue extraction to determine organic pollutants in mussel hemolymph

Behavior of diclofenac from contaminated fish after cooking and in vitro digestion

BACKGROUND

Seafood consumers are widely exposed to diclofenac due to the high contamination levels often present in aquatic organisms. It is a potential risk to public health due its endocrine disruptor properties. Limited information is available about diclofenac behavior after food digestion to enable a more realistic scenario of consumer exposure. This study aimed to evaluate cooking effects on diclofenac levels, and determine diclofenac bioaccessibility by an in vitro digestion assay, using commercial fish species (seabass and white mullet) as models. The production of the main metabolite 4'-hydroxydiclofenac was also investigated. Fish hamburgers were spiked at two levels (150 and 1000 ng g-1) and submitted to three culinary treatments (roasting, steaming and grilling).

RESULTS

The loss of water seems to increase the diclofenac levels after cooking, except in seabass with higher levels. The high bioaccessibility of diclofenac (59.1-98.3%) observed in both fish species indicates that consumers' intestines are more susceptible to absorption, which can be worrisome depending on the level of contamination. Contamination levels did not affect the diclofenac bioaccessibility in both species. Seabass, the fattest species, exhibited a higher bioaccessibility of diclofenac compared to white mullet. Overall, cooking decreased diclofenac bioaccessibility by up to 40% in seabass and 25% in white mullet. The main metabolite 4'-hydroxydiclofenac was not detected after cooking or digestion.

CONCLUSION

Thus, consumption of cooked fish, preferentially grilled seabass and steamed or baked white mullet are more advisable. This study highlights the importance to consider bioaccessibility and cooking in hazard characterization studies. © 2024 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Bioaccumulation of emerging contaminants in mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis): Influence of microplastics

Coastal environments are heavily influenced by human activities. Chemical substances considered as emerging contaminants (ECs) are one of the most important indicators of the anthropic influence on the environment, and they have recently shown to interact with microplastics (MPs). Mussels are suitable for in-lab bioacumulation studies providing insight about the occurrence and fate of contaminants in the organisms. In this study, bioacummulation of 20 chemical substances catalogued as ECs, including pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), pesticides, and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in Mytilus galloprovincialis was assessed, with or without the influence of the presence of MPs. Mussels were distributed in three groups: control (B), exposed to ECs (C) and exposed to ECs and polyethylene MPs (C+M). The study was carried out for 58 days separated in two stages (i) exposure during days 0-28, and (ii) depuration during days 29-58. Visceral mass and haemolymph of the mussels were extracted separately, using QuEChERS and solid phase extraction (SPE), respectively. Then, extracts were analysed via UHPLC-MS/MS. Results showed that 3 PPCPs, 4 pesticides and 3 PFASs accumulated in visceral mass with bioconcentration factors (BCFs) ranging 6.7-15000 L/kg/d. In addition, 2 PPCPs, 2 pesticides and PFPeA were detected in haemolymph showing BCFs ranging 0.9-3.3 L/kg/d. When comparing C and C+M, MPs worked as a vector for the accumulation of the PFASs: PFOA, PFOS, PFDA and PFPeA; showing higher BCFs in the presence of MPs. Furthermore, the elimination of PFDA and PFOS was slower in the mussels exposed to MPs. On the other hand, the pesticides terbuthylazine and chlorpyrifos showed lower BCFs and more rapid elimination in the mussels exposed to MPs.

Determination of organic pollutants in Anguilla anguilla by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)

One of the aspects considered about the presence of contaminants in the aquatic ecosystems is their possible effect on critically endangered species, as the case of European eel, Anguilla anguilla. However, there is a lack of analytical methods to determine these contaminants due to the complexity of eel matrix (contains 5-20 % of lipids and 5-15 % of proteins). Thus, a multi-residue method using QuEChERS extraction a clean-up based on new specific sorbents (to eliminate lipids) and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was developed to determine a mix of 21 contaminants. Compared to the previously reported methods (Degani et al., 1986), which were developed for mussels, in this study, one of the proposed extraction methods were adapted to different fish tissues of higher complexity, such as liver and muscle of A. anguilla.•The effectivity of dispersive solid phase extraction (dSPE) using new specific Enhanced Matrix Removal (EMR-lipid) as clean-up for lipid removal was tested.•Clean extracts of matrices with high protein (5-15 %) and lipid (5-20 %) content were obtained ensuring robustness and durability of the analytical systems.•Emerging contaminants extractable by this procedure comprise four different families (pesticides, perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), pharmaceuticals and drugs of abuse). Then, it could be further applied to wide scope screening strategies.