Distribution and toxicity of persistent organic pollutants and methoxylated polybrominated diphenylethers in different tissues of the green turtle Chelonia mydas

Investigating environmental pollution is important to understand its impact on endangered species such as green turtles (Chelonia mydas). In this study, we investigated the accumulation and potential toxicity of selected persistent organic pollutants (POPs) naturally occurring MeO-PBDEs in liver, fat, kidney muscle (n = 30) different gender, size, year death, location health status. Overall, POP concentrations were low was highest liver lowest fat which likely due poor several animals, causing a remobilization lipids associated compounds. PCBs p,p’-DDE dominated profiles, relatively high MeO-PBDE (2′-MeO-BDE 68 up 192 ng/g lw, 6-MeO-BDE 47 79 lw) detected all tissues. Only few influences factors age, gender found. While compared other marine wildlife, biological equivalences obtained by screening tissue extracts using micro-EROD assay ranged from 2.8 356 pg/g values observed muscle, followed liver. This emphazises that pollutant mixtures found have cause dioxin-like effects these animals compounds should not be overlooked future studies.