title: Study of the distribution of trace elements in six species of marine organisms of the Ligurian Sea (north-western Mediterranean)--comparison with previous findings.
abstract: This paper presents the results of the determination of several trace elements (total and organic mercury, selenium, cadmium, lead, copper, manganese and zinc) in six species of marine organisms (Nephrops norvegicus, Engraulis encrasicolus, Mullus barbatus, Mullus surmuletus, Merluccius merluccius, and Sarda sarda), sampled in the Ligurian Sea (North-West Mediterranean) during a three-year period, from 1998 to 2000. The species analysed (388 samples) are the same studied in previous investigations in the same area (260 samples), so that a comparison with previous data measured in 1977-1986 was possible, in order to evaluate the variation of the marine environment in that area with respect to that period. Biological parameters of the specimens (length and weight of the individuals, and also sex for N. norvegicus) were taken into account in order to make possible the comparison between old and new data. No appreciable variation occurred in the levels of the trace elements analysed during the period 1998-2000, while the comparison with the data collected about 25 years ago showed a decrease of all the elements except for selenium.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologie Farmaceutiche ed Alimentari, Università di Genova, Italy. capelli@dictfa.unige.it
authors.forename: Renzo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Capelli
authors.forename: Giuliana
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Drava
authors.forename: Camilla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Siccardi
authors.forename: Rodolfo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: De Pellegrini
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Minganti
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D005399:Fishes / Q000378:metabolism*; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D008522:Mediterranean Sea; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D008121:Nephropidae / Q000737:chemistry / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D019216:Metals, Heavy