The comparison of heavy metals Hg, Cd and Pb in the tissues of Liza abu from Karoon and Bahmanshir Rivers, Khuzestan Province

Abstract

A comparative study was conducted on concentration of heavy metals Hg, Cd and Pb in the muscle, liver and gill tissues of Liza abu in winter 2009, in Karoon and Bahmanshir Rivers of Khuzestan province. We used 216 specimens of Liza abu. Metals were extracted from the tissues using wet digestion method and concentration of the heavy metals was measured by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The highest concentration of Cd, Hg and Pb were measured at 0.540±0.264, 0.029±0.005 and 1.080±0.128mg/Kg dry weight respectively. The lowest concentration of Cd, Hg and Pb were found to be 0.434±0.035, 0.024±0.001 and 0.930±0.036mg/Kg dry weight, respectively. No significant differences in concentration of heavy metals Cd, Hg and Pb in the muscle, liver and gill of Liza abu from the Karoon and Bahmanshir Rivers were detected (P 0.05). Results showed accumulation of Hg and Cd was lower than the FDA standard but accumulation of Pb was higher than the WHO standard.