Review of assessment on residual contamination and health risk of PAHs in marine organisms

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are chemicals mainly derived from oil and coal and from a variety of organic materials. They are persistent organic pollutants (POPs) with carcinogenicity, teratogenicity and mutagenicity, widespread throughout the environment. Increasing attention has been paid to PAHs pollution which has become the focus of the researches on POPs. Accumulation of PAHs occurs in all marine organisms; and affects not only native wildlife but also human health via contaminated seafood. In this review, we summarize analytical methods, influencing factors and source identification of PAHs in marine organisms (fishes, mussels, crabs, etc.) in recent years. Additionally, we introduce the assessment methods of potential health risk associated with seafood consumption. Finally, we point out the existing problems in present researches to provide direction for future research.