The Bioaccumulation and Health Risk Assessment of Metals among Two Most Consumed Species of Angling Fish (Cyprinus carpio and Pseudohemiculter dispar) in Liuzhou (China): Winter Should Be Treated as a Suitable Season for Fish Angling.

Yupei Hao,Mian Song,Xiongyi Miao,Hucai Zhang

doi:10.3390/ijerph19031519

Abstract

Wild fish caught by anglers were validated to be commonly polluted by metals, but their contamination status could be varied with changing seasons. To determine the seasonal variation in metal pollution and health risks in these fish, this study took Liuzhou City as an example to investigate the concentrations of eight metals in two dominant angling fishes (Cyprinus carpio and Pseudohemiculter dispar) collected, respectively, in winter and summer. The obtained results suggested the mean concentrations of metals in fish are overall lower in winter. Only Cr, Zn, and Cd in some fish were beyond the thresholds in summer. The significant correlations between fish length and weight and most metals suggested the biological dilution effect could exert its influence in winter. The similar distribution of metals in winter suggested that metal bioaccumulation should be manipulated by living habitats, while the inconsistent distribution of metals in summer may be related to the variation in feeding behavior. The metal pollution index (Pi) values were all below 0.2 in winter, which suggested no metal contamination in fish, but most fish were found to be mostly contaminated by Cr and Cd in summer, which was confirmed by their Pi > 0.2. The fish could be consumed freely in winter due to the total target hazard quotient (TTHQ) below 1, while the consumption of fish was not entirely safe in summer, particularly for children, due to TTHQ values that were generally beyond 1. Given the higher weekly recommended consumption of fish in winter, winter should be treated as a suitable season for fish angling.

Highlights

Introduction published maps and institutional affilFish are rich in protein, unsaturated fatty acids (DHA and taurine), and trace elements [1,2], the digestibility of which were confirmed to be significantly higher than that of beef, lamb, pork, and chicken [1,2], so that fish were commonly treated as the most vital source of various nutrients [3,4]
The mean concentrations of metals in fish are overall lower in winter
The metal pollution of rivers distributed in Liuzhou city stems from industrial wastewater and domestic sewage

Summary

Introduction

Introduction published maps and institutional affilFish are rich in protein, unsaturated fatty acids (DHA and taurine), and trace elements [1,2], the digestibility of which were confirmed to be significantly higher than that of beef, lamb, pork, and chicken [1,2], so that fish were commonly treated as the most vital source of various nutrients [3,4]. Previous studies reported that the regular consumption of fish cannot only prevent the development of heart and circulatory diseases, and decrease the risk of stroke, coronary heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension [5,6]. It can promote the normal development of the fetal brain, central nervous and visual systems [7]. With the widespread metal contamination in aquatic environments, one or several metals in fish were reported frequently beyond the safety thresholds across the world, wild fish [2,3,8,9,10]. The consumption of contaminated fish would offset the benefits of fish consumption, but has a negative iations

Methods

Results

Conclusion