Distribution and accumulation of elements (As, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, and Zn) in tissues of fish species from different trophic levels in the Danube River at the confluence with the Sava River (Serbia)

Abstract

Pikeperch (Sander lucioperca), European catfish (Silurus glanis), common carp (Cyprinus carpio), and gobies (Neogobius gymnotrachelus, Neogobius melanostomus) were collected from the Danube River (Belgrade section), and samples of liver, muscle, or whole-body composites (in the case of gobies) were analyzed for As, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, and Zn with inductively coupled plasma optical spectrometry to find out if there was a correlation between accumulation of these elements in predatory and prey species, as well as in pairs of species with overlapping diets. Concentrations of all analyzed elements were either higher (Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn) in liver than in muscle, or equal (As, Hg), except for Hg in carp, which was higher in muscle. Mercury concentration in liver and muscle of predators (catfish, pikeperch) was significantly (<10(-4)) higher than in prey fishes (carp and gobies). The results indicate that Hg concentration was biomagnified through the food chain. Concentrations of As, Fe, and Hg in carp liver and gobies whole-body composite were similar, but carp had significantly (<10(-4)) higher values of Zn and Cu in liver. The regression analysis and trendline equations indicate that the concentrations of all tested elements, except for As in liver, and Mn and Fe in muscle, were similar in predatory fish (pikeperch and catfish), on one hand, and in prey fish (carp and gobies), on the other hand. Distinctly high Zn concentration in carp is very common in this species due to its physiology. Concentrations of Hg and Zn were higher than the maximum acceptable concentration due to the high pollution level in this section of the Danube River, accordingly posing a risk for the human consumption of these fish species.

Assessment of Trace Elements in Tissues of Fish Species: Multivariate Study and Safety Evaluation

“…30,33 Cd levels found in the liver were also comparable with previously reported findings from fish native to Turkish seas 33 and Danube River, Serbia. 9 In other studies of Brazilian fish, the Cd concentrations in muscle tissue ranged from < 0.003 to 0.047 mg kg -1 and 0.014 to 0.123 mg kg -1 . 3,6 Lead is also a non-essential element, and it is well documented that Pb can cause neurotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, and many other adverse health effects.…”

“…12, 2016 in metabolism, including gill, liver and kidney tissues, are known to accumulate greater amounts of trace elements than muscle. [7][8][9][10] The pattern of trace elements distribution is usually evaluated using univariate procedures, but the use of multivariate pattern recognition techniques such as principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) can provide further interpretation of results. PCA and HCA are multivariate analysis techniques commonly employed in the evaluation of food data allowing the establishment of similarities and differences in a data set.…”

Analysis of Heavy Metals Concentration in Tissues of Three Different Fish Species Included in Human Diet from Danube River

“…In the aquatic system, they can be deposited into sediments mainly as non-biodegradable pollutants [2][3][4]. Metal pollutants present in water can accumulate in aquatic organisms from water, sediments or through the food chain [5][6][7][8][9][10]. Some metals like Cu, Zn or Fe are also important for many biochemical processes in living organisms and they are essential elements for aquatic plants and animals [11].…”

“…The River Danube is an important transport route, but it is also signifi cant for commercial fi shing [23]. The presence of pollutants in the Danube River was in the focus of many previous studies [10,22,24] as well as of the Danube Convention by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River. Serbia is a full member of this association since 2003 that includes monitoring of water as well as ecosystem quality [6,25].…”

Trace Metal Determinations Using Voltammetric (DPV-HMDE) and Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (F-AAS and ET-AAS) in Bottom Sediment, Cod, Herring, and Cormorant Tissue Samples

“…However, there are still works that described the determination of trace elements in other tissues. The most popular are fish tissues from lakes and seas all over the world [27][28][29][30][31][32][33]. Nevertheless, a few applications were applied to determine elements in other organism tissues from water [34,35] and land [36].…”