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Seasonal Variation and Association of Heavy Metals in the Vital Organs of Edible Fishes from the River Jhelum in Punjab, Pakistan

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Abstract

The toxic effects of heavy metals are drastic, including accumulation. Fish species are important bio-indicators of heavy metal pollution in aquatic bodies. The current study aimed to assess the seasonal variation of heavy metals in the vital organs of mostly consumed fishes in River Jhelum, Pakistan. Samples of fish, including Wallago attu (Malhi), Rita rita (Khagga), and Mystus seenghala (Singhari), were collected from four different sites, i.e., Khushab, Muhammad Wala (M. Wala), 8.R.D and Rasool barrage during summer and winter seasons. Heavy metals such as iron (Fe), lead (Pb), chromium (Cr), cobalt (Co) and Cadmium (Cd) were estimated through acid digestion and spectrometric analysis. Results showed a significantly higher (P < 0.05) amount of these metals in the liver, followed by the kidneys of fish species. There were seasonal variations in the absorption of these metals as well. Cr (11.71) and Fe (58.66) were detected in higher amounts in Khagga which showed the greatest affinity for certain metals in some cases. In contrast, Singhari showed the greatest affinity to other metals in other cases. Comparative analysis revealed that there was a highly significant (P < 0.05) difference for the accumulation of almost all metals in both seasons and summer had the highest concentration of Cd, Pb, Co, Cr and Fe as compared to winter in all four sampling stations in the case of kidney and liver of all the three fishes. Elevated levels of heavy metals were detected in the summer due to increased temperature. Heavy metals found in the River Jhelum may demonstrate that metals can significantly affect the fish species.

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Data availability

During the present study, all the generated datasets and analyzed data are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, 40100, Punjab, Pakistan

    Iram Inayat, Aima Iram Batool, Khawaja Raees Ahmad, Muhammad Ali Kanwal, Rabiyah Ali, Rameen Khalid & Syed Sikandar Habib

  2. Department of Chemistry, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, 40100, Punjab, Pakistan

    Muhammad Fayyaz Ur Rehman

Authors
  1. Iram Inayat
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  2. Aima Iram Batool
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  3. Muhammad Fayyaz Ur Rehman
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  4. Khawaja Raees Ahmad
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  5. Muhammad Ali Kanwal
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  6. Rabiyah Ali
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  7. Rameen Khalid
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  8. Syed Sikandar Habib
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Contributions

Iram Inayat: conceptualization, writing, methodology, sampling, original draft. Khawaja Raees Ahmad and Muhammad Ali Kawnal: proofreading, supervision. Rameen Khalid and Aima Iram Batool: resources, supervision, proofreading. Muhammad Fayyaz Ur Rehman, Rabiyah Ali and Syed Sikandar Habib: data analysis, methodology, proofreading.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Syed Sikandar Habib.

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The authors followed all the valid national rules for the use and care of animals and the study was conducted after ethical committee approval.

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Inayat, I., Batool, A.I., Rehman, M.F.U. et al. Seasonal Variation and Association of Heavy Metals in the Vital Organs of Edible Fishes from the River Jhelum in Punjab, Pakistan. Biol Trace Elem Res 202, 1203–1211 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-023-03730-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-023-03730-z

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