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Comparative Study of Lead Accumulation in Different Organs of the Freshwater Crab Zilchiopsis oronensis

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Abstract

Lead (Pb) is known as an important aquatic contaminant with different toxic effects on various organisms. Until now, only few quantitative investigations have been published comparing Pb content in different organs of adult freshwater crabs. Their capacity to bioaccumulate other heavy metals is already known, and they can potentially transfer Pb to the terrestrial systems, as they are frequent trophic items of reptiles and birds, even humans. The objectives of this study were to assess Pb accumulation in the gills, carapace, digestive gland, and quela muscle of the freshwater crab Zilchiopsis oronensis, and to correlate bioaccumulation with morphometric data and sex. The crabs were manually caught in unpolluted ponds of the middle Paraná River alluvial valley (Santa Fe, Argentina). After the acclimation period, they were individually and randomly exposed per quadruplicate to three Pb experimental doses: 20, 40, and 80 mg Pb/L, in plastic cages during 15 days. After dissecting the crabs, the tissues were analyzed for lead in a Perkin Elmer Analyst 800 atomic absorption spectrometer. We found significant differences (p < 0.05) between the control and each one of the treatments but not between treatments (p > 0.05) and highly significant differences (p < 0.0001) between Pb concentration in organs. The Tukey posttest showed significant differences (p < 0.05) between gills–carapace, gills–digestive gland, and gills–quela muscle. The weight of the crabs only showed a negative correlation with Pb in the quela muscle (r = −0.53; p = 0.03). Pb in the carapace (but not in the other tissues) was positively correlated with the width (p = 0.571) and length (p = 0.616). Males accumulated more Pb than females, though not significantly. The present paper is aimed to contribute to our knowledge on Pb accumulation in freshwater crabs and select the better indicator organisms for biomonitoring.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by grants from the Universidad Nacional del Litoral, Santa Fe, Argentina (Project CAI+D 2009 no. PI 69–351) and from the Provincia de Santa Fe (Project SECTEI no. 21-10-24).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias, Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología, Universidad Nacional del Litoral, Ciudad Universitaria, 3000, Santa Fe, Argentina

    Ana María Gagneten, Georgina Tumini & Alba Imhof

  2. INTEC–CONICET, Parque Tecnológico Litoral Centro, Ruta Nacional 168, Km 3.5, Paraje El Pozo, Santa Fe, Argentina

    Susana Gervasio

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  1. Ana María Gagneten
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Correspondence to Ana María Gagneten.

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Gagneten, A.M., Tumini, G., Imhof, A. et al. Comparative Study of Lead Accumulation in Different Organs of the Freshwater Crab Zilchiopsis oronensis . Water Air Soil Pollut 223, 617–624 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-011-0887-5

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