Polychlorinated Diphenyl Sulfides: An Emerging Class of Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic Substances in the Environment

Rui Zhang; Xuesheng Zhang; Jiaqi Shi; Mingbao Feng; Xiaoxiang Wang; Doug Crump; Xiaowei Zhang

doi:10.1002/etc.5120

Polychlorinated Diphenyl Sulfides: An Emerging Class of Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic Substances in the Environment

Environ Toxicol Chem. 2021 Oct;40(10):2657-2666. doi: 10.1002/etc.5120. Epub 2021 Jul 7.

Authors

Rui Zhang¹, Xuesheng Zhang^{2

3}, Jiaqi Shi⁴, Mingbao Feng⁵, Xiaoxiang Wang^{6

7}, Doug Crump⁸, Xiaowei Zhang⁹

Affiliations

¹ School of Water Conservancy and Environment, University of Jinan, Jinan, China.
² School of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei, China.
³ Laboratory of Wetland Protection and Ecological Restoration, Anhui University, Hefei, China.
⁴ Nanjing Institute of Environmental Sciences of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, Nanjing, China.
⁵ College of Environment & Ecology, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China.
⁶ State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Integrated Surface Water-Groundwater Pollution Control, School of the Environmental Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.
⁷ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Soil and Groundwater Pollution Control, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.
⁸ Ecotoxicology and Wildlife Health Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada.
⁹ State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.

PMID: 34003500
DOI: 10.1002/etc.5120

Abstract

Polychlorinated diphenyl sulfides (PCDPSs) have recently attracted increasing attention due to their potential adverse effects on human and ecosystem health. We present a review regarding their environmental occurrence, persistence, bioaccumulation, toxicity, and biotransformation. The existing literature demonstrates that PCDPSs are ubiquitous in various environmental matrices, are persistent in the environment, and have long-range transport potential. In addition, the high bioaccumulation potential of these emerging pollutants, especially the low chlorinated PCDPS congeners, has been confirmed based on both theoretical calculations and experimental investigations. Moreover, a spectrum of adverse effects, such as acute liver injury, retardation of development, reproductive disorders, and increased mortality have been widely reported in vertebrates. These adverse outcomes were associated with oxidative stress and activation of aryl hydrocarbon receptors. Given these findings, PCDPSs represent candidate persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic substances and thus deserve further research to fully elucidate their environmental behavior and fate, and evaluate the risks to human and ecosystem health. Environ Toxicol Chem 2021;40:2657-2666. © 2021 SETAC.

Keywords: Bioaccumulation; Biotransformation; Dioxin-like compounds; Persistent bioaccumulative and toxic substances; Polychlorinated diphenyl sulfides.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Animals
Bioaccumulation
Ecosystem*
Humans
Receptors, Aryl Hydrocarbon / metabolism
Sulfides* / metabolism
Sulfides* / toxicity

Substances

Receptors, Aryl Hydrocarbon
Sulfides
diphenyl sulfide