7092

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 7092
• Author: Eisler, R.
• Title: Arsenic Hazards to Fish, Wildlife, and Invertebrates
• USFW Year: 1988.
• USFW - Doc Type: A Synoptic Review.
• Copyright Material: NO

Arsenic concentrations in tissues of marine biota show a wide range of
values, being highest in lipids, liver, and muscle tissues, and varying with
the age of the organism, geographic locale, and proximity to anthropogenic
activities (Table 2). In general, tissues with high lipid content contained
high levels of arsenic. Crustacean tissues sold for human consumption and
collected in U.S. coastal waters usually contained 3 to 10 mg As/kg fresh
weight (Hall et al. 1978), or 1 to 100 mg/kg dry weight (Fowler and Unlu
1978), and were somewhat higher than those reported for finfish and molluscan
tissues. Marine finfish tissues usually contained 2 to 5 +Wg As/+q fresh
weight (Table 2). However, postmortem reduction of As to As occurs
rapidly in fish tissues (Reinke et al. 1975), suggesting a need for additional
research in this area. Maximum arsenic values recorded in elasmobranchs
(mg/kg fresh weight) were 30 in muscle of a shark, Mustelus antarcticus, and
16.2 in muscle of a ray, Raja sp. (Eisler 1981). The highest arsenic
concentration recorded in marine mammals, 2.8 mg As/kg fresh weight lipid, was
from a cetacean captured by Norwegian whalers (Eisler 1981).
Arsenic appears to be elevated in marine biota because of their ability
to accumulate arsenic from seawater or food sources, and not due to localized
pollution (Maher 1985b). The great majority of the arsenic in marine
organisms exists as water-soluble and lipid-soluble organoarsenicals that
include arsenolipids, arsenosugars, arsenocholine, arsenobetaine
((CH3)3AsCH COOH), monomethylarsonate (CH ASO(OH) ), and demethylarsinate
((CH ) ASO(8H)), as well as other forms. Thre is ?o convincing hypothesis to
accoM for the existence of all the various forms of organoarsenicals found
in marine organisms. One suggested hypothesis is that each form involves a
single anabolic/catabolic pathway concerned with the synthesis and turnover
of phosphatidylcholine (Phillips and Depledge 1986). Arsenosugars
(arsenobetaine precursors) are the dominant arsenic species in brown kelp
(Ecklonia radiata), giant clam (Tridacna maxima), shrimp (Pandalus borealis),
and ivory shell (Buccinum striatissimum) (Shiomi et al. 1984a,b; Francesconi
et al. 1985; Matsuto et al. 1986; Phillips and Depledge 1986). For most
marine species, however, there is general agreement that arsenic exists
primarily as arsenobetaine, a water soluble organoarsenical that has been
identified in tissues of western rock lobster (Panulirus cygnus), American
lobster (Homarus americanus), octopus (Paroctopus sp.), sea cucumber
(Stichopus japonicus), blue shark (Prionace lg auca), sole (Limanda sp.), squid
(Sepioteuthis australis), prawn (Penaeus latisulcatus), scallop (Pecten alba),
and many other species including teleosts, molluscs, tunicates, and
crustaceans (Shiomi et al. 1984b; Francesconi et al. 1985; Hanaoka and Tagawa
1985a,b; Maher 1985b; Norin et al. 1985; Matsuto et al. 1986). The potential
risks associated with consumption of seafoods containing arsenobetaine seem to
be minor. The chemical was not mutagenic in the bacterial Salmonella
typhimurium assay (Ames test), had no effect on metabolic inhibition of
Chinese hamster ovary cells at 10,000 mg/1, and showed no synergism or
antagonism on the action of other contaminants (Jongen et al. 1985). Arseno-
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