(Table 1) Concentration of PCB and other contaminants in blood plasma of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from Svalbard

Arno C Gutleb; Peter Cenijn; Martin van Velzen; Elisabeth Lie; Erik Ropstad; Janneche Utne Skaare; Tina Malmberg; Åke Bergman; Geir W Gabrielsen; Juliette Legler

doi:10.1594/pangaea.810387

(Table 1) Concentration of PCB and other contaminants in blood plasma of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from Svalbard

Citation

Gutleb A C, Cenijn P, van Velzen M, Lie E, Ropstad E, Skaare J U, Malmberg T, Bergman Å, Gabrielsen G W, Legler J (2009). (Table 1) Concentration of PCB and other contaminants in blood plasma of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from Svalbard. PANGAEA - Publishing Network for Geoscientific and Environmental Data. Occurrence dataset https://doi.org/10.1594/pangaea.810387 accessed via GBIF.org on 2018-07-21.

Description

Persistent chemicals accumulate in the arctic environment due to their chemical reactivity and physicochemical properties and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are the most concentrated pollutant class in polar bears (Ursus maritimus). Metabolism of PCB and polybrominated biphenyl ether (PBDE) flame-retardants alter their toxicological properties and these metabolites are known to interfere with the binding of thyroid hormone (TH) to transthyretin (TTR) in rodents and humans. In polar bear plasma samples no binding of [125I]-T4 to TTR was observed after incubation and PAGE separation. Incubation of the plasma samples with [14C]-4-OH-CB107, a compound with a higher binding affinity to TTR than the endogenous ligand T4 resulted in competitive binding as proven by the appearance of a radio labeled TTR peak in the gel. Plasma incubation with T4 up to 1 mM, a concentration that is not physiologically relevant anymore did not result in any visible competition. These results give evidence that the binding sites on TTR for T4 in wild living polar bears are completely saturated. Such saturation of binding sites can explain observed lowered levels of THs and could lead to contaminant transport into the developing fetus.

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Bibliographic Citations

Contacts

Arno C Gutleb
originator

Peter Cenijn
originator

Martin van Velzen
originator

Elisabeth Lie
originator

Erik Ropstad
originator

Janneche Utne Skaare
originator

Tina Malmberg
originator

Åke Bergman
originator

Geir W Gabrielsen
originator

Juliette Legler
originator

metadata author
PANGAEA - Data Publisher for Earth & Environmental Science
email: info@pangaea.de
homepage: https://www.pangaea.de

administrative point of contact
PANGAEA - Data Publisher for Earth & Environmental Science
email: info@pangaea.de
homepage: http://www.pangaea.de