Influence of environmental and geographical factor on the heavy metal content in the lungs of Hereford cattle

Abstract

The problem of food contamination by heavy metals due to their accumulation in biosystems as a result of anthropogenic influences has been studied. The results of cadmium, lead, iron and manganese in cattle from the Novosibirsk Region and the Altai Territory are presented. The purpose of the study was to assess the impact of the ecological and geographical factor on the heavy metal content in the lungs of Hereford bulls. Lung samples were taken from 31 clinically healthy Hereford bulls aged 16-18 months. Sample preparation was carried out in accordance with GOST 26929-94 and 30178-96. The chemical composition of the samples was determined by atomic absorption spectrometry with flame and electrothermal atomization. The median values of the content of cadmium, lead, iron and manganese in the lungs of bull-calf were in the range of 0,01-0,12; 0,07-0,11; 70,9-89,1 and 0,3-0,4 mg/kg. The phenotypic variability of the level of iron and manganese was relatively low, while that of lead and cadmium was high. The dispersions of lead and cadmium levels in the animal groups studied were homogeneous, manganese and iron variants were heterogeneous. The influence of the ecological and geographical factor is characteristic only for cadmium levels. For manganese, iron, lead and cadmium the calculated reference ranges are: 0-1.12; 0-148.1 and 0-0.170 mg/kg respectively. They can serve as a guideline for Hereford cattle bred in the territories of Krasnozersky, Novosibirsky and Maslyaninsky districts of the Novosibirsk region and the Tselinny district of the Altai Territory.