The use of short-chain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as surrogates of hazardous long-chain PFAS is rapidly increasing in various industries globally. However, the available studies on the potential toxicity of short-chain PFAS in the environment on living organisms are quite limited. The present pilot study aimed at evaluating the safety of short-chain PFASs on E. coli Csb using simple risk assessment method. We found the cytotoxic impacts of 5 short-chain PFAS (PFBA, PFBS, PFPeA, PFHxA, PFHpA) toward E. coli Csb evaluated by disc diffusion method were significantly increased in a linear dose-dependent manner. We further confirmed the survival of E. coli Csb was decreased by various concentrations of these 5 short-chain PFAS exposure in comparison with the control group, and the reduction of cell viabilities was dose-dependent as well. The present findings do not support the general assumption that short-chain PFAS are safe and suggest that short-chain PFBA, PFBS, PFPeA, PFHxA, and PFHpA are toxic for E. coli Csb. More investigations are needed to assess the potential toxicity of the short-chain PFAS toward various species.
