Using fluorescent aromatic compounds in bile from juvenile salmonids to predict exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

We provide data from four different studies in which fish were fed polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that were used to develop a predictive relationship between dose (mug/g fish/d) and metabolites of PAHs in bile. Juvenile salmonids were fed various doses of total PAH that were applied as a mixture to fish pellets. The number of PAHs in each mixture ranged from 10 to 21 different low- and high-molecular-weight compounds, and their relative proportions and abundance were based on stomach concentrations observed for field-collected fish. Although we examined both the phenanthrene (PHN) and benzo[a]pyrene signals for the fluorescent aromatic compounds (FACs) in bile, the PHN signal exhibited the highest correlation and was considered to be the better choice for predicting exposure. A large database of PHN FAC values for field-collected fish was examined and used to predict dose by the method of inverse prediction. The goal of the present study was to develop a predictive relationship that would allow estimation of an exposure dose for an observed value of PHN FACs from juvenile salmonids sampled in the field. This dose would then be used to estimate adverse effects based on toxicity results from laboratory studies. Additional analyses were performed to determine ventilation doses from water concentrations of total PAH and then relate those to PHN FAC values.