Speciation of arsenic compounds in some marine organisms.

Speciation of arsenic compounds in some marine algae, bivalves, and crustaceans was studied by using two techniques: (i) high-performance liquid chromatography with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry detection and (ii) hydride generation atomic adsorption spectrometry following microwave-assisted digestion. Arsenosugars were identified as the major arsenic compounds present in marine algae, whereas arsenobetaine was the dominant arsenic species present in crab and skimp. In contrast to most previous reports, which claimed arsenobetaine as the only major arsenic species present in marine bivalves, tits study revealed the presence of arsenosugars in addition to arsenobetaine in the bivalves