title: Trace Metals in Noah's Ark Shells (Arca noae Linnaeus, 1758): Impact of Tourist Season and Human Health Risk.
abstract: Commercially important bivalve Noah's Ark shell (Arca noae Linnaeus, 1758) represents a high-quality seafood product, but the data on levels of metal contaminants that could pose a human health risk and also on some essential elements that are important for health protection are lacking. This study examined the concentrations of Cd, Pb, Cr, Ni, Cu, Co, and Zn in the soft tissue of A. noae from harvesting area in the central Adriatic Sea, to survey whether heavy metals are within the acceptable limits for public health and whether tourism could have an impact on them. The concentrations of analysed metals varied for Cd: 0.15-0.74, Pb: 0.06-0.26, Cr: 0.11-0.34, Ni: 0.09-0.22, Cu: 0.65-1.95, Co: 0.04-0.09, and Zn: 18.3-74.7 mg/kg wet weight. These levels were lower than the permissible limits for safe consummation of seafood, and only for Cd, some precautions should be taken into account if older shellfish were consumed. Increase of Cd, Cr, and Cu in shell tissue was observed during the tourist season at the site closest to the marine traffic routes, indicating that metal levels in shellfish tissue should be monitored especially carefully during the peak tourist season to prevent eventual toxic effects due to increased intake of metals, specifically of Cd.
authors.affiliation: Ruđer Bošković Institute, Division for Marine and Environmental Research, Bijenička c. 54, P.O. Box 180, 10002, Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: Dušica
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ivanković
authors.affiliation: Ruđer Bošković Institute, Division for Marine and Environmental Research, Bijenička c. 54, P.O. Box 180, 10002, Zagreb, Croatia. erk@irb.hr.
authors.forename: Marijana
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7221-5551
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Erk
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Agronomy and Aquaculture, University of Zadar, Trg Kneza Višeslava 9, 23000, Zadar, Croatia.
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Župan
authors.affiliation: Maritime Department, University of Zadar, Mihovila Pavlinovića 1, 23000, Zadar, Croatia.
authors.forename: Jelena
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Čulin
authors.affiliation: Ruđer Bošković Institute, Division for Marine and Environmental Research, Bijenička c. 54, P.O. Box 180, 10002, Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: Zrinka
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Dragun
authors.affiliation: Ruđer Bošković Institute, Division for Marine and Environmental Research, Bijenička c. 54, P.O. Box 180, 10002, Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: Niko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bačić
authors.affiliation: Ruđer Bošković Institute, Division for Marine and Environmental Research, Bijenička c. 54, P.O. Box 180, 10002, Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: Ana-Marija
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Cindrić
mesh_terms: D060105:Animal Shells / Q000737:chemistry*; D000818:Animals; D004032:Diet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008670:Metals / Q000032:analysis*; D017747:Seafood / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D008670:Metals; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical