The assessment of chemical pollution in free-ranging living mammals is viable using remote biopsies and portrays a comprehensive scenario of environmental health. The Southwestern Atlantic Ocean holds incredible biodiversity, but it is under the constant and invisible threat of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) of anthropogenic origin, such as pesticides, brominated flame retardants, and industrial-use compounds (e.g., PCBs). Thus, this study aimed to assess the bioaccumulation of POPs (PCBs, DDTs, HCB, mirex and PBDEs) and natural organobromine compounds (MeO-BDEs) using gas-chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry in biopsy samples of Atlantic spotted dolphins (, = 20) that inhabit and forage both inside and in adjacent areas to degraded (Guanabara Bay) and conserved (Ilha Grande Bay) coastal bays in the Southeastern Brazil. Among the studied compounds, PCBs were predominant in the contamination profile with median concentration of 97.0 μg.g lipid weight (lw), followed by the sum of the isomers of DDT, DDD, and DDE of 11.0 μg.g lw, the brominated flame retardants PBDEs of 1.6 μg.g lw, and the other organochlorine pesticides mirex of 0.78 μg.g lw, and HCB of 0.049 μg.g lw. The MeO-BDEs were detected with a median concentration of 22.8 μg.g lw. 85 % of the Atlantic spotted dolphins analyzed in this study presented PCB concentration that exceeded even the less conservative threshold limits for adverse health effects (41 μg.g lw). This study shows that despite the conservation status of preserved bays, cetacean species foraging in these locations are still under increased threat. Hence chemical pollution demands local and global efforts to be mitigated.

中文翻译：

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化学污染热点地区的有机卤素化合物：对自由放养的大西洋斑点海豚（Stenella frontalis）的评估

使用远程活检对自由放养的活体哺乳动物的化学污染进行评估是可行的，并描绘了环境健康的全面情况。西南大西洋拥有令人难以置信的生物多样性，但它始终受到人为来源的持久性有机污染物（POP）的无形威胁，例如杀虫剂、溴化阻燃剂和工业用化合物（例如多氯联苯）。因此，本研究旨在利用气相色谱法与质谱联用技术评估大西洋斑海豚活检样本中 POPs（PCBs、DDTs、HCB、灭蚁灵和 PBDEs）和天然有机溴化合物 (MeO-BDEs) 的生物累积性 (, = 20 ）在巴西东南部退化的（瓜纳巴拉湾）和受保护的（格兰德湾）沿海海湾的内部和邻近地区栖息和觅食。在所研究的化合物中，PCB 在污染分布中占主导地位，中位浓度为 97.0 μg.g 脂质重量 (lw)，其次是 DDT、DDD 和 DDE 异构体总和，为 11.0 μg.g lw，即溴化火焰阻燃剂 PBDE 为 1.6 µg.g lw，其他有机氯农药灭蚁灵为 0.78 µg.g lw，HCB 为 0.049 µg.g lw。检测到 MeO-BDE 的中位浓度为 22.8 μg.g lw。本研究中分析的 85% 的大西洋斑点海豚的 PCB 浓度甚至超过了对健康产生不良影响的不太保守的阈值（41 μg.g lw）。这项研究表明，尽管受保护的海湾处于保护状态，但在这些地点觅食的鲸类物种仍然受到越来越大的威胁。因此，化学污染需要地方和全球的努力来减轻。