‘Contamination’ is a comparative term. In Britain at least, contaminants are trace substances; in the context of food they are distinguished from additives by whether or not there is an intention that the substances should be present when the food is consumed or prepared for consumption. Contaminants may be of natural or of technological origin: and technological contaminants may be direct or i...

Fish is an important part of our food. In addition to its general nutritional value fish contains essential nutrients like omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which are believed to be beneficial for our health. Fish is also an important dietary source of selenium. Unfortunately, several contaminants are present in fish, such as heavy metals and organohalogen contaminants. Well-known examples of th...

To assess levels of chlorinated contaminants in breast milk, we measured organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) in breast milk samples collected in 1994 according to the World Health Organization protocol from 92 donors that were representative of regional populations in southern Kazakstan. High ...

Organochlorine pesticides (OC) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were measured in samples of breast milk taken from 92 donors representative of regional populations in southern Kazakstan. The World Health Organization protocol for assessing levels of chlorinated contaminants in breast milk was followed. The most prevalent OC residues were beta-hexachlorocyclohexane (beta-HCH), p,p'-DDE, p,p'...

Pine voles (Microtus pinetorum) were collected from pesticide-treated orchards in New York (USA) and fed to three captive American kestrels (Falco sparverius) for 60 days to evaluate potential hazards from soil-borne persistent insecticides. Three control kestrels were fed uncontaminated laboratory mice (Mus musculus). The pine voles contained an average of 38 ppm lead, 48 ppm DDE and 1.2 ppm d...

Several current-use (≤ 80 ng g⁻¹ dry weight) and organochlorine pesticides (≤ 15 ng g⁻¹ dry weight) and polychlorinated biphenyls (≤ 18 ng g⁻¹ dry weight) were found in the biodegradable fraction of source separated household waste, compost, and/or anaerobic digestate. The degradation rates of individual compounds differ depending on the treatment. Dieldrin and pentachloroaniline, e.g., degrade...

polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD), whereas 135 congeners belong to the group of polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF). Figure 1 shows general structures of PCCD and PCDF. Dioxins are widespread contaminants with no specific usage and they are not produced. They mostly appear as unwanted byproducts of different industrial processes, combustion in waste incineration, and in the production o...

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and organochlorine compounds (OCs) were determined in the blubber, liver and kidney of Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins (Sousa chinensis) and finless porpoises (Neophocaena phocaenoides) stranded in Hong Kong coastal waters during 1995-2001. Among the organohalogen compounds analyzed, DDTs were the most dominant contaminants with concentrations ranging from ...

Soil constitutes a central environmental compartment that, due to natural and anthropogenic activities, is recipient of several contaminants. Among them, organochlorine pesticides are major concern, even though they have been banned decades ago in the European Union, their persistence health effects can elicit. In presented work, gas chromatographic tandem mass spectrometric (GC-MS/MS) develope...

Previous studies in the Gulf of Gdańsk discussed the responses of selected enzymatic biomarkers to the contaminant gradient in fish and mussels. In the present study, flounder muscle and liver tissues were analyzed for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB congeners: 28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153 and 180), organochlorine pesticides (HCHs, HCB and DDTs), and trace metals (Pb, Cd, Zn, Cu, Hg, Cr). An attem...