GLOBAL CONTAMINATION BY PERSISTENT ORGANOCHLORINES AND THEIR ECOTOXICOLOGICAL IMPACT ON MARINE MAMMALS

The present paper overviews the global contamination by persistent organochlorines and their ecotoxicological implications on marine mammals. The recent pattern of contamination by organochlorine residues in the coastal environment is prominent in tropical regions due to continuous usage in the low-latitude developing countries. The major emission source of organochlorines is probably the tropical belt and large quantities of volatilized contaminants are dispersed through the atmosphere on global terms. Reflecting this, a considerable contamination was observed in open ocean tropical waters as well as in the Arctic and nearby waters. The study of the mass transfer of organochlorines at the air-water interface suggests that the oceanic water bodies, particularly Arctic waters, act as a sink for persistent contaminants. In this regard, the marine mammals, particularly cetaceans, are one of the animal groups receiving high concentrations of persistent organochlorines arising out of a worldwide contamination. They can amplify much greater amounts of toxic contaminants through feeding and also pass them in large quantities from one generation to the next through lactation. Unfortunately, these animals have a smaller capacity for degradation of these contaminants due to the specific mode of cytochrome P-450 enzyme systems. These drug-metabolizing enzyme systems may be related to the possible effects of persistent organochlorines, particularly coplanar PCBs. Furthermore, the residue levels of these contaminants in marine mammals are unlikely to decline in the near future. Considering all these facts, it may be concluded that marine mammals are one of the most vulnerable and possible target organisms with regard to long-term toxicity of hazardous man-made chemicals in the future.