Intake of essential and non-essential elements from consumption of octopus, cuttlefish and squid

Abstract

Total concentrations of essential (Cu, Zn, Se and Cr) and non-essential (Hg, Cd, Pb and As) trace elements were measured in the flesh and hepatopancreas of Octopodidae (Eledone moschata, Eledone cirrhosa, Octopus salutii), Sepiidae (Sepia elegans, Sepia orbignyana) and Loliginidae (Illex coindeti, Loligo vulgaris) from the Mediterranean Sea. As expected, the hepatopancreas showed higher metal concentrations than flesh; the only exceptions were Hg and As, which were equally distributed in the two tissues. Regarding the edible portion, the highest toxic metal concentrations were in Octopodidae (Hg: 0.44, Cd: 0.49, Pb: 0.10 µg g−1 wet weight) and Sepiidae (Hg: 0.27, Cd: 0.50, Pb: 0.12 µg g−1 wet weight), while Loliginidae tended to accumulate less metal, especially Hg (Hg: 0.11, Cd: 0.30, Pb: 0.05 µg g−1 wet weight). The other elements showed a heterogeneous distribution among the different cephalopod families. Loliginidae showed the highest Se concentrations (1.18 µg g−1 wet weight), Octopodidae of Cu (37.37 µg g−1 wet weight) and Zn (42.00 µg g−1 wet weight) and Sepiidae of As (61.43 µg g−1 wet weight), while Cr was uniformly distributed among the various families (0.38–0.43 µg g−1 wet weight). In these seafoods, the concentrations of essential and non-essential elements were within the prescribed limits set by various authorities, except for Cu and As. Health risks posed by toxic elements to humans via dietary intake of these mollusks were assessed on the basis on Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake (PTWI), while the estimated intakes of essential elements were compared to Dietary Reference Intakes (RDIs). A 70-g serving of these mollusks was shown to provide a large contribution to Cd intake (0.89 µg kg−1 body weight), corresponding to 35.6% of PTWI. Concerning the essential elements, the consumption of these mollusks made an important contribution to daily dietary intake of Se, Cu and Zn.