Inverse relationships between selenium and mercury in tissues of young walleye ( Stizosedion vitreum) from Canadian boreal lakes

Abstract

The concentrations of total mercury (Hg), methylmercury (MeHg) and total selenium (Se) were determined in muscle, liver and brain tissues of young-of-the-year walleye ( Stizosedion vitreum) specimens collected from 8 boreal lakes that are located within 107 km around the Sudbury smelters in Ontario, Canada. Dry weight basis concentrations of Hg were highest in muscle and lowest in brain ( p < 0.05), those of MeHg were higher in muscle than in liver and brain but there was no significant difference between liver and brain ( p < 0.05). The highest Se concentrations were found in liver and the lowest in brain ( p < 0.05). Considering the biomass of the studied tissues, muscle was the part of the body where most of Hg, MeHg and Se were accumulated. In fish muscle, the percentage of MeHg over Hg was the highest and this percentage was the lowest in liver. The concentrations of Hg, MeHg and Se in the studied tissues were closely related to the concentrations of total dissolved Se in lake waters which vary with the distance of the lakes from the smelters. Thresholds of Se concentrations in tissues were revealed (6.2, 12.0 and 3.5 mg kg − 1 dry wt., for muscle, liver and brain, respectively), above which a significant reduction of MeHg concentrations was observed in all studied tissues compared to lower Se levels in the same tissues. Based on the collected information and data analysis, possible mechanisms for the biological processes behind the observed inverse relationships between Se and Hg in fish tissues are discussed.