Studies on the metabolism of chlorophenols in fish. IX. Isolation and identification of pentachlorophenyl-.BETA.-glucuronide accumulated in bile of goldfish.

A conjugated-PCP was found in the bile of goldfish, Carassius auratus, after 5-hr exposure to PCP (0.1 ppm). The biliary concentration of the conjugated-PCP increased with exposure time and reached a level of 4.46 μmoles/g, corresponding to a concentration factor of 12000 at 48-hr. The conjugate was isolated by treating the bile with activated charcoal columns, followed by elution with an acetone-ammonia mixture, finally passing the concentrated eluate through a Sephadex G-10 column. The isolated conjugate was identified as pentachlorophenyl-β-glucuronide by hydrolysis on incubation with β-glucuronidase, and by thin-layer and gas-liquid chromatography, and by determination of the molar ratio of PCP to glucuronic acid. No other conjugates including the sulfate conjugate were detected in the bile.