Mercury speciation in the muscle of two commercially important fish, hake ( Merluccius merluccius) and striped mullet ( Mullus barbatus) from the Mediterranean sea: estimated weekly intake

Abstract

Total mercury and methylmercury concentrations were measured in the muscle tissue of two fish species from the Ionian and Adriatic seas. Higher total mercury and methylmercury concentrations were detected in striped mullet ( Mullus barbatus), a benthic species (Ionian sea: Hg=0.40 μg g −1 wet wt, MeHg=0.40 μg g −1 wet wt; Adriatic sea: Hg=0.49 μg g −1 wet wt, MeHg=0.44 μg g −1 wet wt), than in hake ( Merluccius merluccius), a pelagic species (Ionian sea: Hg=0.09 μg g −1 wet wt, MeHg=0.09 μg g −1 wet wt; Adriatic sea: Hg=0.18 μg g −1 wet wt; MeHg=0.16 μg g −1 wet wt). Total mercury residues were determined in all samples of both species from the Adriatic sea, while levels below the limit of detection were registered in 25% and 11%, respectively, of striped mullet and hake samples from the Ionian sea. In 18.8% and 22.2% of striped mullet samples from the Ionian and Adriatic seas, respectively, total mercury concentrations exceeded the maximum level fixed by the European Commission Decision (Hg=0.5 μg g −1 wet wt). In the two different species, mercury was present almost completely in the methylated form with mean percentages between 60% and 100%. The estimated weekly intake for total mercury was below the established the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) for both species, though their consumption provides a methylmercury intake above the WHO safety limit.