Occurrence and assessment of perfluorinated compounds in fish from the Danjiangkou reservoir and Hanjiang river in China

Residues of eight perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) were investigated in 15 fish samples from the Danjiangkou reservoir and Hanjiang river (Xiangyang and Zhongxiang sections). The total concentrations of PFCs in fish muscles ranged from 2.01 to 43.8 ng g−1 dry weight. The mean concentration of total PFCs from related muscles showed the following trend in various regions: Zhongxiang section < Xiangyang section < Danjiangkou reservoir. Perfluorooctane sulphonate (PFOS) was the dominant PFC in the fish liver samples from the Danjiangkou reservoir. The calculated hazard ratio (HR) of PFCs, for all fish muscle samples, was less than 1.0, and could be classified at safe levels for the general population. However, yellow croaker fish from the Danjiangkou reservoir and Hanjiang river–Xiangyang section had HRs of 0.2, indicating that frequent consumption of this contaminated fish may pose an unacceptable risk to human health.