Tissue-specific and whole-fish accumulation of polychlorinated biphenyls by juvenile Baltic salmon (Salmo salar L.) after oral gavage exposure

The bioaccumulation and accumulation efficiencies of four different polychlorinated biphenyl congeners (PCB-18, PCB-44, PCB-137, PCB-169) were measured in short-term (14-42-d) bioaccumulation tests performed on juvenile Baltic salmon (Salmo salar L.). The PCBs were administered to the fish through oral gavage implantation of gelatine capsules once a week. The given dosages were similar to the concentrations found in the main prey of Baltic salmon in the Gulf of Finland. The accumulation efficiencies of the four PCB congeners occurred in the order: PCB-44 > PCB-18 ~ PCB-137 > PCB-169. All the four PCB congeners accumulated to higher concentrations in lipid-rich intestines as compared with PCB bioaccumulation in liver, muscle sample and carcass remaining after those tissue removals. While the relative accumulation efficiency of the salmon intestine was 21.3% (SD = 10.1%), as much as 74.0% (SD = 12.7%) of the PCBs was assimilated in a salmon carcass. Average total accumulation efficiency of total PCB was 71%.