Sterols as biomarkers in the surface microlayer of the estuarine areas

•We determined the concentration of sterols in the surface microlayer.•Diagnostic ratio and principal component analysis was used to determine sources.•Cholesterol was found as a dominant sterol in the surface microlayer.•Sterols in the surface microlayer contributed to by both anthropogenic and nat...

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Veröffentlicht in:Marine pollution bulletin 2015-04, Vol.93 (1-2), p.278-283
Hauptverfasser: Alsalahi, Murad Ali, Latif, Mohd Talib, Ali, Masni Mohd, Dominick, Doreena, Khan, Md Firoz, Mustaffa, Nur Ili Hamizah, Nadzir, Mohd Shahrul Mohd, Nasher, Essam, Zakaria, Mohamad Pauzi
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Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:•We determined the concentration of sterols in the surface microlayer.•Diagnostic ratio and principal component analysis was used to determine sources.•Cholesterol was found as a dominant sterol in the surface microlayer.•Sterols in the surface microlayer contributed to by both anthropogenic and natural sources. This study aims to determine the concentration of sterols used as biomarkers in the surface microlayer (SML) in estuarine areas of the Selangor River, Malaysia. Samples were collected during different seasons through the use of a rotation drum. The analysis of sterols was performed using gas chromatography equipped with a flame ionisation detector (GC–FID). The results showed that the concentrations of total sterols in the SML ranged from 107.06 to 505.55ngL−1. The total sterol concentration was found to be higher in the wet season. Cholesterol was found to be the most abundant sterols component in the SML. The diagnostic ratios of sterols show the influence of natural sources and waste on the contribution of sterols in the SML. Further analysis, using principal component analysis (PCA), showed distinct inputs of sterols derived from human activity (40.58%), terrigenous and plant inputs (22.59%) as well as phytoplankton and marine inputs (17.35%).
ISSN:0025-326X
1879-3363
DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.01.011