Tissue-specific mercury concentrations in two catfish species from the Brazilian coast

Azevedo, Juliana de Souza; Sarkis, Jorge Eduardo de Souza; Oliveira, Talita Aparecida; Ulrich, João Cristiano

Abstracts

Some regions of Brazil have particularly high levels of mercury (Hg) emissions due to industrial activities, and their fish species may therefore suffer high levels of contamination through bioaccumulation. In this paper we assess Hg contamination in the muscle, liver, gills and blood of two different species of catfish collected from the Cananéia and Santos-São Vicente estuaries, São Paulo State, Brazil. Fish from the most polluted site (Santos-São Vicente) showed higher median Hg concentrations in both species (Cathorops spixii - liver: 1530 µg Kg-1, muscle: 327 µg Kg-1 and gill: 101 µg Kg-1; Genidens genidens - liver: 2617 µg Kg-1, muscle: 393 µg Kg-1 and gill: 118 µg Kg-1). Multivariate analysis revealed the importance and influence of key biological variables (size, condition, etc.) in determining the overall level of Hg and its distribution within different tissues.

Mercury; Bioaccumulation; Biomonitoring; Data fields; Catfish; Estuaries

Algumas regiões do Brasil apresentam, altos níveis de emissões de mercúrio (Hg) devido às atividades industriais, e suas espécies de peixes podem, portanto, estar expostos a elevados níveis de contaminação por meio da bioacumulação. Neste trabalho avaliamos a contaminação por Hg no músculo, fígado, brânquias e sangue de duas espécies de bagres coletados nos estuários de Cananéia e Santos-São Vicente, São Paulo, Brasil. Peixes amostrados no local mais poluído (Santos-São Vicente) mostraram maiores concentrações de Hg em ambas as espécies (Cathorops spixii - fígado: 1530 µg Kg-1, músculo: 327 µg Kg-1 e brânquias: 101 µg Kg-1; Genidens genidens - fígado: 2617 µg Kg-1, músculo: 393 µg Kg-1 e brânquias: 118 µg Kg-1). Análises multivariadas revelaram a importância e influência das principais variáveis biológicas (tamanho, condição, etc.) no teor geral de Hg e sua distribuição nos diferentes tecidos.

Mercúrio; Bioacumulação; Biomonitoramento; Dados de campo; Bagres; Estuários

ADAMS, S. M.; RYON, M. G. A comparison of health assessment approaches for evaluating the effects of contaminant-related stress on fish populations. J. Aquatic Ecossyst. Health, v. 3, p. 15-25, 1994.
ADAMS, D. H.; SONNE, C.; BASU, N.; DETZ, R.; NAM, D-H.; LEIFSSON, P. S.; JENSEN, A. L. Mercury contamination in spotted seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus: An assessment of liver, kidney, blood, and nervous system health. Sci. Total Environ., v. 408, p. 5808-5816, 2010.
AGUIAR, V. M. C.; BRAGA, E. S. Seasonal and tidal variability of phosphorus along a salinity gradient in the heavily polluted estuarine system of Santos/São Vicente- São Paulo, Brazil. Mar. Pollut. Bull., v. 54, p. 464-488, 2007.
ALONSO, D.; PINEDA, P.; OLIVERO, J.; GONZÁLEZ, H.; CAMPOS, N. Mercury levels in muscle of two fish species and sediments from the Cartagena Bay and the Ciénagas Grande de Santa Marta, Colômbia. Environ. Pollut., v. 109, p. 157-163, 2000.
AZEVEDO, J. S.; FERNANDEZ, W. S.; FARIAS, L. A.; FÁVARO, D. T. I.; BRAGA, E. S. Use of the tropical brazilian fish Cathorops spixii as a bioindicator of trace metals pollution in Santos Bay. Ecotoxicol., v. 18, p. 577-586, 2009a.
AZEVEDO, J. S.; SERAFIM, A.; COMPANY, R.; BRAGA, E.; FÁVARO, D. I.; BEBIANNO, M. J. Biomarkers of exposure to metal contamination and lipid peroxidation in the benthic fish Cathorops spixii from two estuaries in South America, Brazil. Ecotoxicol., v. 18, p. 1001-1010, 2009b.
BOENING, D. W. Ecological effects, transport, and fate of mercury: a general review. Chemosphere, v. 40, p.1335-1351, 2000.
BOLDRINI, C. V.; NAVAS-PEREIRA, D. N. Metais pesados na baía de Santos e estuário de Santos e São Vicente. Ambiente, v.1, n. 3, p.118-127, 1987.
BUSTAMANTE, P.; BOCHET, P.; CHEREL, Y.; MIRAMAND, P.; CAURANT, F. Distribution of trace elements in tissues of benthic and pelagic fish from the Kerguelen Islands. Sci. Total Environ., v. 313, p. 25-39, 2003.
BRAGA, E. S.; FONSECA, A. L. O.; BOSQUILHA, G. E.; DUCATTI, G. M. F.; AGUIAR, V. M. C.; LIMA, C. A. C.; ARASAKI, E. Eutrophication and bacterial pollution assessment risks on the Santos Bay sandy beaches (Brazil): influence of seasonal conditions. J. Coast. Res., v. 35, p. 516-524, 2003.
COELHO, J. P.; SANTOS, H.; REIS, A.T.; FALCÃO, J.; RODRIGUES, E. T.; PEREIRA, M. E.; DUARTE, A. C.; PARDAL, M. A. Mercury bioaccumulation in the spotted dogfish (Scyliorhinus canicula) from the Atlantic Ocean. Mar. Pollut. Bull., v. 60, n. 8, p. 1372-1375, 2010.
ENDO, T.; HISAMICHI, Y.; KIMURA, O.; KOTAKI, Y.; KATO, Y.; OHTA, C.; KOGA, N.; HARAGUCHI, K.Contamination levels of mercury in the muscle of female and male spiny dogfishes (Squalus acanthias) caught off the coast of Japan. Chemosphere, v. 77, p. 1333-1337, 2009.
FIGUEIREDO, J. L.; MENEZES, N. A. Manual de peixes marinhos do sudeste do Brasil. II. Teleostei (1) São Paulo: Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, 1978. 110 p.
FITZGERALD, W.; ENGSTROM, D. R.; MASON, R. P.; NATER, E. A. The case for atmospheric mercury contamination in remote areas. Environ. Sci. Technol., v. 32, n. 1, p. 1-7, 1998.
FURNESS, R. W.; RAINBOW, P. S. Heavy Metals in the Marine Environment Boca Raton; Boston: CRC Press, 1990. 256 p.
HARMELIN-VIVIEN, M.; COSSA, D.; CROCHET, S.; BANARU, D.; LETOURNEUR, Y.; MELLON-DUVAL, C. Difference of mercury bioaccumulation in red mullets from the north-western Mediterranean and Black seas. Mar. Pollut. Bull., v. 58, p. 679-685, 2009.
HEATH, A. G. Water Pollution and Fish Physiology 2. ed.. Boca Raton, Boston: CRC Press, 1995. 245 p.
KARELS, A. E.; SOIMASUO, M.; LAPPIVAARA, J.; LEPPANEN, H.; AALTONEN, T.; MELLANEN, P.; OIKARI, A .O. J. Effects of EFC-bleached kraft mill effluent on reproductive steroids and liver MFO activity in populations of pearch and roach. Ecotoxicol., v.7, p. 123-132, 1998.
KASPER, D.; PALERMO, E. F. A.; DIAS, A. C. M. I.; FERREIRA, G. L.; LEITÃO, R. P.; BRANCO, C. W. C.; MALM, O. Mercury distribution in different tissues and trophic levels of fish from a tropical reservoir, Brazil. Neotrop. Ichthyol., v. 7, n. 4, p. 751-758, 2009.
KOJADINOVIC, J.; POTIER, M.; LE CORRE, M.; COSSON, R. P.; BUSTAMANTE, P. Bioaccumulation of trace elements in pelagic fish from the Western Indian Ocean. Environ. Pollut., v. 146, p. 548-566, 2007.
LICATA, P.; TROMBETTA, D.; CRISTANI, M.; NACCARI, C.; MARTINO, D.; CALÓ, M.; NACCARI, F. Heavy metals in liver and muscle of Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus thynnus) caught in the straits of Messina (Sicily, Italy). Environ. Monit. Assess., v. 107, n. 1-3, p. 239-248, 2005.
LIMA, A. P. S.; SARKIS, J. E. S.; SHIHOMATSU, H. M.; MULLER, R. C. S. Mercury and selenium concentrations in fish samples from Cachoeira do Piria Municipality, Para State, Brazil. Environ. Res., v. 97, n. 3, p. 236-244, 2005.
MOL, J. H.; RAMLAL, J. S.; LIETAR, C.; VERLOO, M. Mercury fontamination in freshwater, estuarine, and marine fishes in relation to small-scale gold mining in Suriname, South America. Environ. Res. Section A, v. 86, p. 183-197, 2001.
PORVARI, P. Mercury levels of fish in Tucurui hydroelectric reservoir and in River Mojti in Amazonia, in the state of Pará, Brazil. Sci. Total Environ., v. 175, p. 109-117, 1995.
SARDANS, J.; MONTENS, F.; PEÑUELAS, J. Determination of As, Cd, Cu, Hg and Pb in biological samples by modern electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry. Spectrochim. Acta, Part B, v. 65, p. 97-112, 2010.
SCHMIDT, T. C. S.; MARTINS, I. A.; REIGADA, A. L. D.; DIAS, J. F. Taxocenose de bagres marinhos (Siluriformes, Ariidae) da região estuarina de São Vicente, SP, Brasil.Biota Neotrop., v. 18, n. 4, p. 73-81, 2008.
SCHNEIDER, L.; BELGER, L.; BURGER, J.; VOGT, R. C. Mercury bioacumulation in four tissues of Podocnemis erythrocephala (Podocnemididae: Testudines) as a function of water parameters. Sci. Total Environ., v. 407, p. 1048-1054, 2009.
SHAH, A. Q.; KAZI, T. G.; BAIG, J. A.; AFRIDI, H. I.; KANDHRO, G. A.; ARAIN, M. B.; KOLACHI, N. F.; WADHWA, S. K. Total mercury determination in different tissues of broiler chicken by using cloud point extraction and cold vapor atomic absorption spectrometry. Food Chem. Toxicol., v. 48, p. 65-69, 2010.
TIJARO, R.; RUEDA, M.; SANTOS-MARTINEZ, A. Dinâmica poblacional del chivo mapalé Cathorops spixii em la Ciénaga Grande de Santa Marta y complejo de Pajarales, Caribe Colombiano. Bol. Invest. Mar. Cost., v. 27, p. 87-102, 1998.
VAZZOLER, A. E. A DE. Biologia da reprodução de peixes teleósteos: Teoria e Prática Maringá.: EDUEM, 1996. 169 p.
WANG, R.; WONG, M-H.; WANG, W-X. Mercury exposure in the freshwater tilapia Oreochromis niloticus Environ. Pollut., v. 158, n. 8, p. 2694-2701, 2010.
WIENER, J. G.; SPRY, D. J. Toxicological significance of mercury in fresh water fish. In: BEYER, W. N.; HEINZ, G. H.; REDMON-NORWOOD, A. W. (Ed.). Environmental contaminants in wildlife interpreting tissue concentrations Lewis, Boca Raton Publishers, 1996.

Publication Dates

Publication in this collection
18 July 2012
Date of issue
June 2012

History

Received
28 July 2011
Accepted
03 Nov 2011
Reviewed
03 Oct 2011

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

[1] ADAMS, S. M.; RYON, M. G. A comparison of health assessment approaches for evaluating the effects of contaminant-related stress on fish populations. J. Aquatic Ecossyst. Health, v. 3, p. 15-25, 1994.

[2] ADAMS, D. H.; SONNE, C.; BASU, N.; DETZ, R.; NAM, D-H.; LEIFSSON, P. S.; JENSEN, A. L. Mercury contamination in spotted seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus: An assessment of liver, kidney, blood, and nervous system health. Sci. Total Environ., v. 408, p. 5808-5816, 2010.

[3] AGUIAR, V. M. C.; BRAGA, E. S. Seasonal and tidal variability of phosphorus along a salinity gradient in the heavily polluted estuarine system of Santos/São Vicente- São Paulo, Brazil. Mar. Pollut. Bull., v. 54, p. 464-488, 2007.

[4] ALONSO, D.; PINEDA, P.; OLIVERO, J.; GONZÁLEZ, H.; CAMPOS, N. Mercury levels in muscle of two fish species and sediments from the Cartagena Bay and the Ciénagas Grande de Santa Marta, Colômbia. Environ. Pollut., v. 109, p. 157-163, 2000.

[5] AZEVEDO, J. S.; FERNANDEZ, W. S.; FARIAS, L. A.; FÁVARO, D. T. I.; BRAGA, E. S. Use of the tropical brazilian fish Cathorops spixii as a bioindicator of trace metals pollution in Santos Bay. Ecotoxicol., v. 18, p. 577-586, 2009a.

[6] AZEVEDO, J. S.; SERAFIM, A.; COMPANY, R.; BRAGA, E.; FÁVARO, D. I.; BEBIANNO, M. J. Biomarkers of exposure to metal contamination and lipid peroxidation in the benthic fish Cathorops spixii from two estuaries in South America, Brazil. Ecotoxicol., v. 18, p. 1001-1010, 2009b.

[7] BOENING, D. W. Ecological effects, transport, and fate of mercury: a general review. Chemosphere, v. 40, p.1335-1351, 2000.

[8] BOLDRINI, C. V.; NAVAS-PEREIRA, D. N. Metais pesados na baía de Santos e estuário de Santos e São Vicente. Ambiente, v.1, n. 3, p.118-127, 1987.

[9] BUSTAMANTE, P.; BOCHET, P.; CHEREL, Y.; MIRAMAND, P.; CAURANT, F. Distribution of trace elements in tissues of benthic and pelagic fish from the Kerguelen Islands. Sci. Total Environ., v. 313, p. 25-39, 2003.

[10] BRAGA, E. S.; FONSECA, A. L. O.; BOSQUILHA, G. E.; DUCATTI, G. M. F.; AGUIAR, V. M. C.; LIMA, C. A. C.; ARASAKI, E. Eutrophication and bacterial pollution assessment risks on the Santos Bay sandy beaches (Brazil): influence of seasonal conditions. J. Coast. Res., v. 35, p. 516-524, 2003.

[11] COELHO, J. P.; SANTOS, H.; REIS, A.T.; FALCÃO, J.; RODRIGUES, E. T.; PEREIRA, M. E.; DUARTE, A. C.; PARDAL, M. A. Mercury bioaccumulation in the spotted dogfish (Scyliorhinus canicula) from the Atlantic Ocean. Mar. Pollut. Bull., v. 60, n. 8, p. 1372-1375, 2010.

[12] ENDO, T.; HISAMICHI, Y.; KIMURA, O.; KOTAKI, Y.; KATO, Y.; OHTA, C.; KOGA, N.; HARAGUCHI, K.Contamination levels of mercury in the muscle of female and male spiny dogfishes (Squalus acanthias) caught off the coast of Japan. Chemosphere, v. 77, p. 1333-1337, 2009.

[13] FIGUEIREDO, J. L.; MENEZES, N. A. Manual de peixes marinhos do sudeste do Brasil. II. Teleostei (1) São Paulo: Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, 1978. 110 p.

[14] FITZGERALD, W.; ENGSTROM, D. R.; MASON, R. P.; NATER, E. A. The case for atmospheric mercury contamination in remote areas. Environ. Sci. Technol., v. 32, n. 1, p. 1-7, 1998.

[15] FURNESS, R. W.; RAINBOW, P. S. Heavy Metals in the Marine Environment Boca Raton; Boston: CRC Press, 1990. 256 p.

[16] HARMELIN-VIVIEN, M.; COSSA, D.; CROCHET, S.; BANARU, D.; LETOURNEUR, Y.; MELLON-DUVAL, C. Difference of mercury bioaccumulation in red mullets from the north-western Mediterranean and Black seas. Mar. Pollut. Bull., v. 58, p. 679-685, 2009.

[17] HEATH, A. G. Water Pollution and Fish Physiology 2. ed.. Boca Raton, Boston: CRC Press, 1995. 245 p.

[18] KARELS, A. E.; SOIMASUO, M.; LAPPIVAARA, J.; LEPPANEN, H.; AALTONEN, T.; MELLANEN, P.; OIKARI, A .O. J. Effects of EFC-bleached kraft mill effluent on reproductive steroids and liver MFO activity in populations of pearch and roach. Ecotoxicol., v.7, p. 123-132, 1998.

[19] KASPER, D.; PALERMO, E. F. A.; DIAS, A. C. M. I.; FERREIRA, G. L.; LEITÃO, R. P.; BRANCO, C. W. C.; MALM, O. Mercury distribution in different tissues and trophic levels of fish from a tropical reservoir, Brazil. Neotrop. Ichthyol., v. 7, n. 4, p. 751-758, 2009.

[20] KOJADINOVIC, J.; POTIER, M.; LE CORRE, M.; COSSON, R. P.; BUSTAMANTE, P. Bioaccumulation of trace elements in pelagic fish from the Western Indian Ocean. Environ. Pollut., v. 146, p. 548-566, 2007.

[21] LICATA, P.; TROMBETTA, D.; CRISTANI, M.; NACCARI, C.; MARTINO, D.; CALÓ, M.; NACCARI, F. Heavy metals in liver and muscle of Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus thynnus) caught in the straits of Messina (Sicily, Italy). Environ. Monit. Assess., v. 107, n. 1-3, p. 239-248, 2005.

[22] LIMA, A. P. S.; SARKIS, J. E. S.; SHIHOMATSU, H. M.; MULLER, R. C. S. Mercury and selenium concentrations in fish samples from Cachoeira do Piria Municipality, Para State, Brazil. Environ. Res., v. 97, n. 3, p. 236-244, 2005.

[23] MOL, J. H.; RAMLAL, J. S.; LIETAR, C.; VERLOO, M. Mercury fontamination in freshwater, estuarine, and marine fishes in relation to small-scale gold mining in Suriname, South America. Environ. Res. Section A, v. 86, p. 183-197, 2001.

[24] PORVARI, P. Mercury levels of fish in Tucurui hydroelectric reservoir and in River Mojti in Amazonia, in the state of Pará, Brazil. Sci. Total Environ., v. 175, p. 109-117, 1995.

[25] SARDANS, J.; MONTENS, F.; PEÑUELAS, J. Determination of As, Cd, Cu, Hg and Pb in biological samples by modern electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry. Spectrochim. Acta, Part B, v. 65, p. 97-112, 2010.

[26] SCHMIDT, T. C. S.; MARTINS, I. A.; REIGADA, A. L. D.; DIAS, J. F. Taxocenose de bagres marinhos (Siluriformes, Ariidae) da região estuarina de São Vicente, SP, Brasil.Biota Neotrop., v. 18, n. 4, p. 73-81, 2008.

[27] SCHNEIDER, L.; BELGER, L.; BURGER, J.; VOGT, R. C. Mercury bioacumulation in four tissues of Podocnemis erythrocephala (Podocnemididae: Testudines) as a function of water parameters. Sci. Total Environ., v. 407, p. 1048-1054, 2009.

[28] SHAH, A. Q.; KAZI, T. G.; BAIG, J. A.; AFRIDI, H. I.; KANDHRO, G. A.; ARAIN, M. B.; KOLACHI, N. F.; WADHWA, S. K. Total mercury determination in different tissues of broiler chicken by using cloud point extraction and cold vapor atomic absorption spectrometry. Food Chem. Toxicol., v. 48, p. 65-69, 2010.

[29] TIJARO, R.; RUEDA, M.; SANTOS-MARTINEZ, A. Dinâmica poblacional del chivo mapalé Cathorops spixii em la Ciénaga Grande de Santa Marta y complejo de Pajarales, Caribe Colombiano. Bol. Invest. Mar. Cost., v. 27, p. 87-102, 1998.

[30] VAZZOLER, A. E. A DE. Biologia da reprodução de peixes teleósteos: Teoria e Prática Maringá.: EDUEM, 1996. 169 p.

[31] WANG, R.; WONG, M-H.; WANG, W-X. Mercury exposure in the freshwater tilapia Oreochromis niloticus Environ. Pollut., v. 158, n. 8, p. 2694-2701, 2010.

[32] WIENER, J. G.; SPRY, D. J. Toxicological significance of mercury in fresh water fish. In: BEYER, W. N.; HEINZ, G. H.; REDMON-NORWOOD, A. W. (Ed.). Environmental contaminants in wildlife interpreting tissue concentrations Lewis, Boca Raton Publishers, 1996.