Impact of industrial effluents on physico-chemical parameters of water and fatty acid profile of fish, Labeo rohita (Hamilton), collected from the Ramsar sites of Punjab, India

Abstract

In this contemporary era, wetlands and the entire aquatic diversity are suffering from major pollution problem. Not only the aggregation of higher population in metropolitan causes the production of plenty of solid, liquid and gaseous wastes, but also the high-technological industries contribute to a mammoth of wastes in the ecosystem. During the process of industrial effluent discharge into the water bodies, the toxic substances available in these wastes can affect the aquatic flora and fauna, resultantly disturbing the entire system and constituting human health hazards indirectly or directly. The objective of this study was to estimate the nutritional value of the liver and intestine of fish which is being discarded as waste during fish processing and pollution status by calculated water quality index (WQI) and comparison of both wetlands during diverse seasons. WQI of Harike Wetland was observed to be 56.68 which indicates that water quality in this wetland is “poor”, while at Nangal Wetland WQI was calculated to be 39.54 and comes under “good” water quality and safe for the entire ecosystem. HPI (heavy metal pollution index) for Harike Wetland was observed 144.9 and for Nangal Wetland was 3.12, indicating heavy load of heavy metal pollution at test sample site. MI (metal index) value was also detected higher at test sample site (4.76) as compared to that at control site (0.22). The mean total n-3 and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) declined in the liver of test fish samples (Harike Wetland) as compared to control fish (Nangal Wetland) samples except in winter season. Similarly, mean total saturated fatty acids (SFAs) were also found to decline significantly ( p <0.05) in the liver of test fish sample as compared to control fish sample during autumn and winter seasons. Significant ( p <0.05) decline of mean total n-3 PUFAs (except winter) and total n-6 PUFAs (except rainy) in the intestine of test fish sample was observed during all the seasons when compared to control fish samples. However, total SFAs were found to increase in the intestine of test fish samples as compared to control fish samples during all the studied seasons. In the present investigation, fluctuations recorded in the water quality parameters and major groups of FAs in the tissues were due to the geographical location and pollution load in the fish samples taken from Harike Wetland.

Water quality assessment of a Ramsar site and promising impact of phytoextraction of heavy metals by native plant species.

“…The burgeoning population of the cities and intensi cation of industries implies that large quantities of solid and/or liquid wastes in the form of either sewage or industrial e uents are released into the water bodies and/or land. The Industrial wastes containing high quantities of dissolved and suspended solids, high Biological Oxygen Demand-(BOD) and Chemical Oxygen Demand-(COD) values, heavy metals, organic and inorganic chemicals, pesticide run-offs, oils and grease harms aquatic life when discharged into the water bodies (Kaur and Brraich 2022). The contaminants gets to accumulate in wetland plants and sediments through such anthropogenic activities, leading to biomagni cation in aquatic organisms, particularly in the tissues of sh.…”

Content of Fatty Acids in Relation to the Metal Concentration in the Muscle of Two Freshwater Fish Species

“…The studies have also shown that the unsaturated fatty acid content varies significantly depending on the season, which may affect the nutritional properties and storage conditions of fish. In general, a decrease in temperature leads to an increase in the degree of unsaturation [11,12]. In particular, FA composition, degree of unsaturation, and changes in the relative abundance of individual fatty acids have been shown to respond to contamination levels both in experiments and in practise [13,14].…”