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Monitoring heavy metal contamination on the Iranian coasts of the Persian Gulf using biological indicators: risk assessment for the consumers

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Abstract

This research was conducted to determine the concentration of heavy metals (Cu, Pb, and Ni) in the sediments as well as the gill and muscle tissue of Siganus javus and two species of algae (Padina australis and Sargassum vulgare) collected from the Persian Gulf coasts of Bushehr province, which were studied using standard laboratory methods. The general form and trend of metal uptake at different stations in the gill and muscle tissue was Cu > Ni > Pb. The results of the study of metal uptake in both algae showed that the uptake of all three metals was higher in Padina species (Pb ˂ Cu ˂ Ni). The estimated daily intake (EDI), estimated weekly intake (EWI), allowable fish consumption rate limit (CRlim), and the target hazard quotients (THQ) for the consumption of this fish were also calculated. It was found that the concentration of heavy metals in the edible parts of the fish did not exceed the permissible limits proposed by the WHO, MAFF, JECFA, and NHMRC for human consumption, but the Ni concentration was higher than standard. The consumer risk indexes for non-cancerous diseases due to all metals were lower than standard. Also, the total risk index (HI) in this study was 0.065.

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Data availability

Data supporting Tables 1–4, are publicly available in Marine Data Archive repository, as part of this record: http://mda.vliz.be/directlink.php?fid=VLIZ_00001041_60f2bbdbe4a7e893968028

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Acknowledgements

Special appreciation is due to Dr. Mohammad-Taghi Ronagh for his accompaniment for field sampling.

Funding

This project was carried out at Khorramshahr University Laboratory and funded by the Khorramshahr University of Marine Science and Technology, Iran.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Natural Resources, Khorramshahr University of Marine Science and Technology, Khorramshahr, Iran

    Maryam Saadatmand

  2. Department of Natural Resources, Faculty of Environmental Science, Khorramshahr University of Marine Science and Technology, Khorramshahr, Iran

    Ali Dadolahi-Sohrab & Sayyed-Hossein Khazaei

  3. Department of Marine Biology and Fisheries Sciences, Tonekabon Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tonekabon, Iran

    Mostafa Bagheri Tavani

  4. Department of Natural Resources, Bushehr University of Persian Gulf, Bushehr, Iran

    Faegheh Saadatmand

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  1. Maryam Saadatmand
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  2. Ali Dadolahi-Sohrab
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  3. Mostafa Bagheri Tavani
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  4. Sayyed-Hossein Khazaei
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  5. Faegheh Saadatmand
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Correspondence to Maryam Saadatmand.

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Saadatmand, M., Dadolahi-Sohrab, A., Tavani, M.B. et al. Monitoring heavy metal contamination on the Iranian coasts of the Persian Gulf using biological indicators: risk assessment for the consumers. Environ Monit Assess 194, 83 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-09755-6

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