Metabolites of 2,4,4'-tribrominated diphenyl ether (BDE-28) in pumpkin after in vivo and in vitro exposure.

There is currently limited knowledge on PBDE metabolism in plants although they could play an important role in the environmental transformation of these persistent organic pollutants. In this study, pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima × C. moschata) was chosen as the model to understand the fate of BDE-28 in plants. MeO-tri-BDEs, OH-tri-BDEs, and OH-tri-BDEs were found as metabolites in plant samples of both in vivo hydroponic and in vitro tissue culture exposure. Three MeO-tri-BDEs were further identified as para-substituted metabolites. MeO-BDEs and OH-BDEs, respectively, accounted for about 1.6% and 1.5% (recovery corrected) of initial amount of BDE-28 according to the semiquantitative results. Other PBDEs, especially less brominated PBDEs as impurities in the standard of BDE-28, were also detected. The impurities and evaporation of the standard must be considered when trace metabolites are studied in exposure experiments.