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Bioaccumulation of heavy metals in water, sediments, and tissues and their histopathological effects on Unio tigridis (Bourguignat 1852)

  • Research Article - Hydrology and Hydraulics
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Abstract

The current study assessed the accumulation rate of four heavy metals (i.e., Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb) in water, sediment, and tissues of the freshwater mussels Unio tigridis. The trace metal concentrations in water, sediment, and tissues showed the following decreasing trend: Zn (mean W: 31.08 mg/L; mean S: 10.495 mg/g; and mean T:4.925 mg/g) > Cu (mean W: 6.538 mg/L; mean S: 46.712 mg/g; and mean T: 17.127) > Pb (mean W: 31.08 mg/L; mean S: 10.495 mg/g; and mean T:4.925 mg/g) > Cd (mean W: 0.277 mg/L; mean S: 0.77 mg/g; and mean T: 0.674 mg/g), and the toxic metal concentrations exceeded the recommended acceptable limits. Necrosis, blood cell infiltration, atrophy, epithelium damage, brown cells, and fat agglomerates were the most common histological changes found in the digestive glands of mussels. These histopathological lesions can be considered reliable biomarkers in biomonitoring programs for heavy metal contamination in aquatic ecosystems.

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Acknowledgements

The authors extend their appreciation to the Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University Researchers Supporting Project number (PNURSP2023R437), Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Sciences of Sfax, The University of Sfax, Sfax, Tunisia

    Hassan Hadi Abdoul

  2. The University of Carthage, Faculty of Sciences of Bizerte, Laboratory of Environmental Biomonitoring (LR01ES14), Zarzouna, Tunisia

    Hassan Hadi Abdoul, Noureddine Khalloufi, Mustapha Bejaoui & Ezzeddine Mahmoudi

  3. Department of Biology, College of Science, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, P.O. Box 84428, Riyadh, 11671, Saudi Arabia

    Nawal Al-Hoshani

  4. Biology Department, College of Science, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU), Riyadh, 11623, Saudi Arabia

    Fehmi Boufahja

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  1. Hassan Hadi Abdoul
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  2. Noureddine Khalloufi
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  3. Mustapha Bejaoui
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  4. Nawal Al-Hoshani
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Correspondence to Hassan Hadi Abdoul.

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Edited by Dr. Yuri Vanessa Nieto (GUEST EDITOR) / Dr. Michael Nones (CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF).

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Abdoul, H.H., Khalloufi, N., Bejaoui, M. et al. Bioaccumulation of heavy metals in water, sediments, and tissues and their histopathological effects on Unio tigridis (Bourguignat 1852). Acta Geophys. (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11600-023-01120-6

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