Testosterone and persistent organic pollutants in East Greenland male polar bears (Ursus maritimus)
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Testosterone and persistent organic pollutants in East Greenland male polar bears (Ursus maritimus). / Ciesielski, Tomasz M.; Sonne, Christian; Smette, Eli I.; Villanger, Gro Dehli; Styrishave, Bjarne; Letcher, Robert J.; Hitchcock, Daniel J.; Dietz, Rune; Jenssen, Bjørn M.
In: Heliyon, Vol. 9, No. 3, e13263, 2023.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Testosterone and persistent organic pollutants in East Greenland male polar bears (Ursus maritimus)
AU - Ciesielski, Tomasz M.
AU - Sonne, Christian
AU - Smette, Eli I.
AU - Villanger, Gro Dehli
AU - Styrishave, Bjarne
AU - Letcher, Robert J.
AU - Hitchcock, Daniel J.
AU - Dietz, Rune
AU - Jenssen, Bjørn M.
N1 - Funding Information: Funding statement: This work was supported by the Danish Cooperation for Environment in the Arctic (Dancea), The Prince Albert II Foundation , the Commission for Scientific Research in Greenland (KVUG) and International Polar Year (IPY 2007-2008). Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors
PY - 2023
Y1 - 2023
N2 - Legacy persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are chemicals that undergo long-range transport to the Arctic. These chemicals possess endocrine disruptive properties raising concerns for development and reproduction. Here, we report the relationship between concentrations of testosterone (T) and persistent organic pollutant (POPs) in 40 East Greenland male polar bears (Ursus maritimus) sampled during January to September 1999–2001. The mean ± standard concentrations of blood T were 0.31 ± 0.49 (mean ± SD) ng/mL in juveniles/subadults (n = 22) and 3.58 ± 7.45 ng/mL in adults (n = 18). The ∑POP concentrations (mean ± SD) in adipose tissue were 8139 ± 2990 ng/g lipid weight (lw) in juveniles/subadults and 11,037 ± 3950 ng/g lw in adult males, respectively, of which Σpolychlorinated biphenyls (ΣPCBs) were found in highest concentrations. The variation in T concentrations explained by sampling date (season), biometrics and adipose tissue POP concentrations was explored using redundancy analysis (RDA). The results showed that age, body length, and adipose lipid content in adult males contributed (p = 0.02) to the variation in POP concentrations. However, although some significant relationships between individual organochlorine contaminants and T concentrations in both juveniles/subadults and adult polar bears were identified, no significant relationships (p = 0.32) between T and POP concentrations were identified by the RDAs. Our results suggest that confounders such as biometrics and reproductive status may mask the endocrine disruptive effects that POPs have on blood T levels in male polar bears, demonstrating why it can be difficult to detect effects on wildlife populations.
AB - Legacy persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are chemicals that undergo long-range transport to the Arctic. These chemicals possess endocrine disruptive properties raising concerns for development and reproduction. Here, we report the relationship between concentrations of testosterone (T) and persistent organic pollutant (POPs) in 40 East Greenland male polar bears (Ursus maritimus) sampled during January to September 1999–2001. The mean ± standard concentrations of blood T were 0.31 ± 0.49 (mean ± SD) ng/mL in juveniles/subadults (n = 22) and 3.58 ± 7.45 ng/mL in adults (n = 18). The ∑POP concentrations (mean ± SD) in adipose tissue were 8139 ± 2990 ng/g lipid weight (lw) in juveniles/subadults and 11,037 ± 3950 ng/g lw in adult males, respectively, of which Σpolychlorinated biphenyls (ΣPCBs) were found in highest concentrations. The variation in T concentrations explained by sampling date (season), biometrics and adipose tissue POP concentrations was explored using redundancy analysis (RDA). The results showed that age, body length, and adipose lipid content in adult males contributed (p = 0.02) to the variation in POP concentrations. However, although some significant relationships between individual organochlorine contaminants and T concentrations in both juveniles/subadults and adult polar bears were identified, no significant relationships (p = 0.32) between T and POP concentrations were identified by the RDAs. Our results suggest that confounders such as biometrics and reproductive status may mask the endocrine disruptive effects that POPs have on blood T levels in male polar bears, demonstrating why it can be difficult to detect effects on wildlife populations.
KW - Arctic
KW - Endocrine disruption
KW - PCBs
KW - POPs
KW - Reproductive organs
KW - Seasonal hormone levels
U2 - 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13263
DO - 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13263
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 37101474
AN - SCOPUS:85151366097
VL - 9
JO - Heliyon
JF - Heliyon
SN - 2405-8440
IS - 3
M1 - e13263
ER -
ID: 346244302