Mass spectrometry in environmental chemistry and toxicology

Abstract

The aquatic environment has long been a sink for diverse chemicals released as a result of human activities. In order to assess the associated risks for the aquatic life, both the chemicals’ occurrences (exposure) as well as their effects in the living organisms (hazard) need to be known. These two aspects are studied by environmental chemistry and toxicology, respectively. Mass spectrometry has been successfully applied in both fields, as it can be used not only for measuring the pollutants in different environmental compartments, but also for gaining novel insights into the molecular mechanisms of toxicity. We here discuss the application of mass spectrometry in environmental chemistry and toxicology, illustrated by several case studies drawn from research carried out at our institute.