Distribution of trace metals and methylmercury in soft tissues of the freshwater eel Anguilla marmorata in Vietnam.
This study investigated trace metals in water, sediment, and various organs of the mature eel Anguilla marmorata in the Ba River, Vietnam. The metal concentrations in water and sediment did not exceed the Vietnam water criteria and sediment background concentration, except for Mn and Pb in sediment. The results of metal analysis in eel specimens indicated that the liver and kidney were the dominant organs for almost all trace metals, whereas muscle tended to accumulate high levels of Hg and approximately 87.4-100% of Hg was methylmercury. A strong positive correlation between mercury levels in muscle and age were found, but there was no correlation between mercury and body size. Interestingly, a high concentration of Zn was found in the gonad and liver; this indicated that high levels of Zn in the liver might play a physiologically important role in the eel's biological mechanisms during gonadal maturation. Though almost none of the metal concentrations in the muscle exceeded the reference doses of the U.S. EPA, approximately 80% of eels from the river contained mercury exceeding the recommended levels (0.30 microg/g) of the U.S. EPA and might present a risk for human consumption.
Le
Dung Quang
DQ
International Coastal Research Center, Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, Akahama 2-106-1, Otsuchi, Iwate 028-1102, Japan. lqdung@ori.u-tokyo.ac.jp
Nguyen
Duc Cu
DC
Harino
Hiroya
H
Kakutani
Naoya
N
Chino
Naoko
N
Arai
Takaomi
T
D000811:Anguilla / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000737:chemistry*; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry; D005880:Gills / Q000378:metabolism; D007668:Kidney / Q000378:metabolism; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism; D008670:Metals / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D009132:Muscles / Q000378:metabolism; D018570:Risk Assessment; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*
D008670:Metals; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical