Total Mercury (THg) Content in Red Mullet (Mullus barbatus) from Adriatic Sea (Central Mediterranean Sea): Relation to Biological Parameters, Sampling Area and Human Health Risk Assessment

Federico Girolametti; Emanuela Frapiccini; Anna Annibaldi; Silvia Illuminati; Monica Panfili; Mauro Marini; Alberto Santojanni; Cristina Truzzi;

Mercury (Hg) is a pollutant that has toxic effects on ecosystems and biota. As it biomagnifies in the food chain, its presence in edible fish poses a high risk to human health. Herein, total Hg (THg) content was quantified in 2018-2019 using thermal decomposition amalgamation atomic absorption spectrometry in muscle tissue of red mullet (Mullus barbatus), a commercially important species throughout the Adriatic Sea (Central Mediterranean Sea). Specimens were grouped into 16 pools based on sex, reproductive stages, and sampling area. The overall mean value of THg content was 0.20 ± 0.15 mg kg-1 in terms of wet weight. THg levels in males and females showed no statistically significant differences, whereas specimens that were captured in open sea showed a higher THg content than coastal samples. Statistically significant differences between THg content and the reproductive stages of fish were found in females. However, neither lipid content nor fish length were statistically correlated with THg content. The analyzed specimens were considered to be safe food according to EU directives, but it is necessary to exercise caution and further investigate Italian people in the 0-18 age group, because they were found to be exposed to a higher dose of methylmercury than the safety threshold set by the EFSA.

2022 - Journal article

Applied sciences 12 (2022): 10083. doi:10.3390/app121910083

Keywords: Mercury, Mullus barbatus, Adriatic Sea, food safety

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The research activities of the Institute are carried out in the context of research, development and innovation projects, both national and international, based on regional funding programs (POR FEAMPA - Regional Operational Program of the European Maritime Affairs Fisheries Fund and Aquaculture and POR FESR - Regional Operational Program of the European Regional Development Fund) or ministerial (PRIN - Projects of relevant national interest, PNRA - National Research Program in Antarctica, PO FEAMPA - National Operational Program European Maritime Affairs Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund) , programs for European Territorial Cooperation (Interreg), direct funding programs of the European Commission (Horizon2020 and Horizon Europe, Life, JPI - Joint Programming Initiatives, ERA-NET Cofund) and thematic collaboration initiatives managed by international organizations such as, for example , the FAO - GFCM (General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean). The Institute also develops funded projects in the context of collaborations with private companies in the sectors of the blue economy as well as technology transfer and research results. Research projects, mainly of a collaborative nature, are developed through a wide network of partners that include major Italian and foreign research institutions and universities.

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