Laboratory measurements of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations in the blood of mahi-mahi (Coryphaena hippurus)

In this project, a group of mahi-mahi (Coryphaena hippurus) fish were exposed to high energy water accommodated fraction (HEWAF) of oil for 24 hours. Blood was then extracted from fish, and plasma was isolated. The plasma was analyzed for the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) content. Phenanthrene C14 was added to the blood extracted from a different group of mahi-mahi fish that had not been previously exposed to PAH. The blood was then analyzed to determine the distribution of Phenanthrene in the blood (plasma, red blood cells or plasma bound). The measurement of both total PAH and phenanthrene in plasma was done using Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry - selective ion monitoring (GC/MS-SIM) technique. The quantification of phenanthrene C14 partitioning in the blood of mahi-mahi was used to estimate the concentration of physiologically active PAHs following exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of oil following the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill.