Heavy metal concentrations in commercially valuable fishes with health hazard inference from Karnaphuli river, Bangladesh

Abstract

Heavy metals contamination is a serious threat for the toxicity and bioaccumulation in food chain. Aquatic environment contamination has become a global concern because they have toxic effects on fishes. The concentration of heavy metals like arsenic (As), chromium (Cr), cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in commercially fishes (Tenualosa ilisha, Gudusia chapra, Otolithoides pama, Setipinna phasa, Harpadon nehereus, Polynemus paradiseus, Sillaginopsis panijus and Pampus chinensis) collected from Karnaphuli River in Bangladesh were (fish muscles) assessed with health risk during summer and winter season. These heavy metals are toxic in nature and can come to human food chain through fish consumption. The mean concentration of As, Cr, Cd and Pb was found 1.59, 0.73, 0.41 and 1.13 mg/kg in summer and 1.81, 0.92, 0.52 and 1.45 mg/kg in winter, respectively. Cr and Pb concentration of all fish species were found to be higher than Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)/(WHO) tolerable concentration assuming these metal pose risk to human. The hazard quotients value of heavy metals in Harpadon nehereus was found higher than one resulting non-carcinogenic risk for consumption of this fishes. Carcinogenic risk value for As and Pb were remaining 10⁻⁶ to 10⁻⁴ indicating continuously consumption of studied fish samples may cause cancer risk.

Keywords:

• Fish
• heavy metal
• hazard quotient
• hazard index
• cancer risk
• Bangladesh

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest. This study mainly focuses on the toxic metal’s concentration in some commercially important fishes including the human health risk assessment in a coastal river of Bangladesh. We extensively monitored the present pollution status of heavy metals in the edible part of riverine fishes.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the authority and staff members of the Fish Inspection and Quality Control (FIQC) Laboratory, Khulna, Bangladesh for providing laboratory facilities and co-operation during the sample analysis. Furthermore, we are thankful for the kind help from the members of Patuakhali Science and Technology University and Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Bangladesh during the field sampling.

Additional information

Funding

The authors are grateful for financial support by the National Science and Technology Fellowship (NST-2014-15) from the Ministry of Science and Technology, The Government People’s Republic of Bangladesh.