Hazardous and essential trace elements profile in the different soft tissues of Lithophaga lithophaga (Linnaeus, 1758) from Southern Adriatic Sea (Italy)

ABSTRACT

A characterization study of 7 hazardous (Hg, Pb, Cd, As, Cr, U, and Ni) and 11 essential (Co, Mo, Se, Cu, Zn, V, Ca, Al, Sr, Mn, and Fe) trace elements in date mussels (Lithophaga lithophaga,Linnaeus, 1758) was carried out by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer. Date mussels (231 individuals), caught in the Gulf of Manfredonia (Southern Italy), were divided into 4 size-related groups. The different tissues (muscle, stomach, hepatopancreas and rest of soft tissues) were separated and analyzed to study the capability of absorption of this species. No particular differences were reported on the basis of the shell size; the soft tissues play an important role on the accumulation levels of hazardous and essential trace elements. These marine animals may be considered a good bioindicator of marine environmental pollution for their longevity and habitat permanence peculiarities.

KEYWORDS:

• Date mussel
• trace elements
• ICP-MS
• multivariate analysis

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The present work has been conducted without any financial support of sponsor. Research and preparation of the article have been carried out entirely by internal resources of the “Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata.”