Bioaccumulation of heavy metals in commercially important marine species from Puducherry coast, Southeast India

Abstract

Safety of aquatic products is one of the important public health concerns globally, mainly in developing countries with culture and capture fisheries. In the present study, the bioaccumulation of heavy metals such as Cu, Zn, Cr, Pb, As and Cd in the muscle tissues of crustaceans, molluscs and finfishes collected from the Pondicherry (Puducherry) coast were determined using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Among the analysed organisms, maximum concentration of Cu (26.1 ±0.83μg/g) was observed in Perna viridis, Zn (25.03 ±0.82μg/g) in Charybdis feriata, 1.33 ±0.04μg/g of Cr in Atule mate, 1.48 ±1.05μg/g of Pb in Sardinella fimbriata, 2.88±2.16μg/g of Cd in Nemipterus jopanicus and 0.72 ±0.15μg/ g of As in Decapterus russelii. Among the various marine organisms studied, the benthic species showed higher metal accumulation than the pelagic species. The heavy metal accumulation level differed significantly between the organisms. The elemental levels in analysed organisms are within the maximum acceptable levels proposed by various international standards and guidelines. Hazard index (HI) of all the analysed marine organisms showed distinctly lower values than threshold value as suggested by World Health Organization (WHO) and Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for all the studied elements. Overall, the analysed marine organisms are considered safe for human consumption and export. This study provides the baseline data on heavy metal contamination in edible marine organisms from the Puducherry coast of India that will help in developing effective management plans and continuous monitoring of the coast.