Bioaccumulation of perfluoroalkyl substances in the Lake Erie food web

The bioaccumulation and biomagnification of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the Lake Erie food web was investigated by analyzing surface water and biological samples including 10 taxa of fish species, 2 taxa of benthos and zooplankton. The carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopic composition and fatty acids profiles of biological samples were used to evaluate the food web structure and assess the biomagnification of PFAS. Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) dominated the total PFAS (ΣPFAS) concentration (50–90% of ΣPFAS concentration), followed by C9–C11 perfluorinated carboxylic acids (PFCAs). The highest PFOS concentrations (79 ± 4.8 ng/g, wet weight (wwt)) and ΣPFAS (88 ± 5.2 ng/g, wwt) were detected in yellow perch (Perca flavescens). The C8–C14 PFAS biomagnification factors (BMFs) between apex piscivorous fish and prey fish were found to be generally greater than 1, indicative of PFAS biomagnification, while biodilution (BMF