Abstract
WE have found traces of phthalate esters in fish caught in various parts of North America. In a routine monitoring programme, gas-liquid chromatographic (GLC) analyses revealed two unidentified peaks in many fish extracts and in procedural blanks examined for insecticide residues. The two compounds have now been identified with gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer techniques1 as di-n-butyl and di-2-ethylhexyl phthalates. These compounds, widely used as plasticizers, proved to be of low toxicity, but our data suggest that they could be detrimental to some aquatic organisms.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Stalling, D. L., Proc. Second Intern. Cong. Pesticide Chem., Tel Aviv (1971).
US Tariff Commission Plasticisers Rep. (1971).
Nematollahi, J., Guess, W. L., and Autian, J., J. Pharm., 56, 1446 (1967).
Farm Chemicals (Meister, Willoughby, Ohio, 1971).
Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater (Amer. Public Health Assoc., New York, 1971).
Litchfield, jun., J. T., and Wilcoxon, T., Pharmacol. Exp. Ther., 69, 99 (1949).
Matsuda, K., and Schnitzer, M., Bull. Environ. Contam. Toxicol., 6, 200 (1971).
Cerbulis, J., and Ard, J. S., J. Assoc. Offic. Anal. Chem., 50, 646 (1967).
Nazir, D. J., Beroza, M., and Nair, P. P., Fed. Proc., 26, 412 (1967).
Taborsky, R. G., J. Agric. Food Chem., 15, 1073 (1967).
Morris, R. J., Nature, 227, 1264 (1970).
Ogner, G., and Schnitzer, M., Science, 170, 317 (1970).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
MAYER, F., STALLING, D. & JOHNSON, J. Phthalate Esters as Environmental Contaminants. Nature 238, 411–413 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1038/238411a0
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/238411a0
This article is cited by
-
Facet effect of hematite on the hydrolysis of phthalate esters under ambient humidity conditions
Nature Communications (2022)
-
Anaerobic degradation of xenobiotic isophthalate by the fermenting bacterium Syntrophorhabdus aromaticivorans
The ISME Journal (2019)
-
Phthalate esters distribution in coastal mariculture of Hong Kong, China
Environmental Science and Pollution Research (2018)
-
Biomonitoring of chemicals in biota of two wetland protected areas exposed to different levels of environmental impact: results of the “PREVIENI” project
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (2017)
-
Long-term effects of di-octyl phthalate on the expression of immune-related genes in Tegillarca granosa
Chinese Journal of Oceanology and Limnology (2016)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.