Accumulation and Characterization of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Seafood from the Coastal Areas of Korea

Twenty seafood samples, which are common edible species and commercially important items in Korea, were purchased at the local fisheries markets and were analyzed for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometer detector (GC/MSD). The levels of sixteen PAHs in seafood from Korean coasts were 161 to 2,243 pg/g wet weight. The highest concentration was found at saury (Coloabis saira) and the lowest level was found at jacopever (Sebastes schlegeli). The concentrations of potentially carcinogenic PAHs of six species were in the range of 9 to 123 pg/g wet weight. The residues of PAHs in fishes from Korean coasts were slightly low or relatively moderate to other countries. There was no correlation between PAH residues and lipid contents in seafood samples. The predominant contributors in fish samples were lower-molecular-weight two and three ring aromatic PAHs such as naphthalene, acenaphthene, fluorene and phenanthrene. Filter-feeding organisms like shrimp, crab and topshell were dominated by three- and four-ring aromatic PAHs. The PAH profiles in marine sediments, bivalves, fishes, shrimp, crab and topshell according to exposure pathway were compared through factor analysis. The PAH profiles were clearly classified by the difference of species or environmental matrices. This result suggests that most of PAHs within the same samples behave identically in marine environment.