Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Mercury contamination in seafood from an aquatic environment impacted by anthropic activity: seasonality and human health risk

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Environmental Science and Pollution Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Petroleum activity and the dumping of domestic and industrial sewage are important sources of mercury (Hg) contamination in the aquatic environment. Thus, this article aimed to biomonitor the Hg concentration in fish, mussels, and swimming crabs of commercial importance in southeastern Brazil. The quantifications were carried out over a year to verify the influence of seasonality. Finally, a risk assessment was applied to identify whether the concentrations found could lead to long-term damage to the population. Our results indicate that the contaminations were higher in spring, summer, and winter than in autumn, mainly among fish and swimming crabs. The results of quantification in the animal and estimated monthly intake, despite being below the limit established nationally and internationally, were indicative of risk for these two animals after calculating the Hazard quotient. The highest risk values were attributed to the infant population. Based on the data generated by this work, the consumption of mussels is encouraged throughout the year, to the detriment of the other types of seafood studied, especially during summer, spring, and winter. Our work reinforces the importance of risk assessment for a more reliable understanding of the impact of contaminants in seafood on the population’s health.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

Data availability

All data are available on request.

References

  • Andrade LS, Frameschi IF, Costa RC, Castilho AL, Fransozo A (2014) The assemblage composition and structure of swimming crabs (Portunoidea) in continental shelf waters of southeastern Brazil. Cont Shelf Res 94:8–16

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ansari NR, Fernandez MA, Brito JL, Vidal LG, Costa ESA, Malm O (2016) Assessing mercury contamination in a tropical coastal system using the mussel Perna perna and the sea anemone Bunodosoma caissarum. Environ Monit Assess 188:679

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Antoine JMR, Fung LAH, Grant CN (2017) Assessment of the potential health risks associated with the aluminium, arsenic, cadmium and lead content in selected fruits and vegetables grown in Jamaica. Toxicol Rep 4:81–187

    Google Scholar 

  • ANVISA (2013) Ministério da Saúde, Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária. RDC n 42 de 29 de agosto de 2013. Provides for the MERCOSUR Technical Regulation on Maximum Limits of Inorganic Contaminants in Food. Official Gazette [of] the Federative Republic of Brazil, Brasília

  • Arcagni M, Juncos R, Rizzo A, Pavlin M, Fajon V, Arribére MA, Horvat M, Ribeiro Guevara S (2018) Species and habitat-specific bioaccumulation of total mercury and methylmercury in the food web of a deep oligotrophic lake. Sci Total Environ 612:1311–1319

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Avellan A, Stegemeier JP, GaI K, Dale J, Hsu-Kim H, Levard C, O’Rear D, Hoelen TP, Lowry GV (2018) Speciation of Mercury in Selected Areas of the Petroleum Value Chain. Environ Sci Technol 52(3):1655–1664

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bai Z, Wang M (2020) Warmer temperature increases mercury toxicity in a marine copepod. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 201:110861

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Baki MA, Hossain MM, Akter J, Quraishi SB, Haque Shojib MF, Atique Ullah AKM, Khan MF (2018) Concentration of heavy metals in seafood (fishes, shrimp, lobster and crabs) and human health assessment in Saint Martin Island, Bangladesh. Ecotoxicol Environ 15(159):153–163

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baldwin J, Johnsen S (2009) The importance of color in mate choice of the blue crab Callinectes sapidus. J Exp Biol 212(22):3762–3768

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bauer AB, Paiva TC, de Barboza CAM, Malm O, Fischer LG (2021) Mercury Concentrations in Four Marine Fishery Resources from Rio de Janeiro Coast, SW Atlantic, and Potential Human Health Risk Via Fish Consumption. Biol Trace Eleme Res 199(12):4772–4781

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Belabed B-E, Laffray X, Dhib A, Fertouna-Belakhal M, Turki S, Aleya L (2013) Factors contributing to heavy metal accumulation in sediments and in the intertidal mussel Perna perna in the Gulf of Annaba (Algeria). Mar Pollut Bull 74:477–489

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bjørklund G, Dadar M, Mutter J, Aaseth J (2017) The toxicology of mercury: current research and emerging trends. Environ Res 159:545–554

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bordon ICAC, Sarkis JES, Andrade NP, Hortellani MA, Favaro DIT, Kakazu MH, Cotrim MEB, Lavradas RT, Moreira I, Saint’Pierre TD, Hauser Davis RA (2016) An environmental forensic approach for tropical estuaries based on metal bioaccumulation in tissues of Callinectes danae. Ecotoxicol 25:91–104

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Braga ES, Niencheski LFH (2006) Composition of water bodies and their productive potential in the area between Cabo de São Tomé (RJ) and Chuí (RS). In: Oceanographic environment of the continental shelf and slope in the Southeast-South region of Brazil. EDUSP,  São Paulo, pp 161–218. Available in: https://repositorio.usp.br/item/001561998. Accessed June 2022

  • Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) (2020) Household budget survey 2017–2018: analysis of personal food consumption in Brazil / IBGE. IBGE, Rio de Janeiro, Work and Income Coordination, p 147

    Google Scholar 

  • Briant N, Chouvelon T, Martinez L et al (2017) Distribuição espacial e temporal de mercúrio e metilmercúrio em bivalves da costa francesa. Mar Pollut Bull 114:1096–1102

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Canário J, Branco V, Vale C (2007) Seasonal variation of monomethylmercury concentrations in surface sediments of the Tagus Estuary (Portugal). Environ Pollut 148(1):380–383

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cano-Sancho G, Perello G, Maulvault AL, Marques A, Nadal M, Domingo JL (2015) Oral Bioaccessibility of Arsenic, Mercury and Methylmercury in Marine Species Commercialized in Catalonia (Spain) and Health Risks for the Consumers. Food Chem Toxicol 85:34–40

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carvalho-Filho A (1999) Fish: Brazilian Coast. Marca d'água, São Paulo, p 320

  • Chaudhary DK, Kim H, Reible D, Lee M, Kim S, Kim LH, Kim S, Hong Y (2022) Seasonal trends of mercury bioaccumulation and assessment of toxic effects in Asian clams and microbial community from field study of estuarine sediment. Environ Res 212:113439

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Copat C, Grasso A, Fiores M, Cristaldi A, Zuccarello P, Signorelli SS, Conti GO, Ferrante M (2018) Trace elements in seafood from the Mediterranean sea: An exposure risk assessment. Food Chem Toxicol 115:13–19

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Corrales D, Acuña A, Salhi M, Saona G, Brugnoli E (2016) Copper, zinc, mercury and arsenic content in Micropogonias furnieri and Mugil platanus of the Montevideo coastal zone, Río de la Plata. Braz J Oceanogr 64(1):57–66

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costa MF, Barbosa SCT, Barlettal M, Dntas DV, Kehrig HA, Seixas TG, Malm O (2009) Seasonal differences in mercury accumulation in Trichiurus lepturus (Cutlassfish) in relation to length and weight in a Northeast Brazilian estuary. Environ Sci Pollut Res 16:423–430

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Costa FN, Korn MGA, Brito GB, Ferlin S, Fostier AH (2016) Preliminary results of mercury levels in raw and cooked seafood and their public health impact. Food Chem 192:837–841

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Costa BNS, Almeida HP, Silva BCP, Figueiredo LG, Oliveira AM, Lima MO (2019) Macrobrachium amazonicum (Crustacea, Decapoda) Used to biomonitor mercury contamination in rivers. Arch Environ Contam and Toxicol 78:245–253

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costa F, Coelho JP, Baptista J, Martinho F, Pereira ME, Pardal MA (2020) Mercury accumulation in fish species along the Portuguese coast: are there potential risks to human health? Mar Pollut Bull 150:110740

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Costa BS, Custódio FB, Deus VL, Hoyos DCM, Gloria MBA (2021) Mercury in raw and cooked shrimp and mussels and dietary Brazilian exposure. Food Control 121:107669

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Crab Database, Taxon Tree of Crabs (2016) Available in: https://www.crabdatabase.info/en/crabs. Accessed in: 16 september 2021

  • Dang F, Wang WX (2012) Why mercury concentration increases with fish size? Biokinetic explanation. Environ Pollut 163:192–198

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Delgado-Alvarez CG, Ruelas-Inzunza J, Osuna-Martínez CC, Bergés-Tiznado ME, Escobar-Sánchez O, Ocampo-Rodríguez PO, Soto-Romero KL, Garzón-Raygoza NL, Aguilar-Júarez M, Osuna-López JI, Frías-Espericueta M (2020) Mercury and selenium concentrations in the crab Callinectes arcuatus from three coastal lagoons of NW Mexico. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28(9):10909–10917

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diop M, Amara R (2016) Mercury concentrations in the coastal marine food web along the Senegalese coast. Pollut Environ Quality Assess 23(12):11975–11984

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • European Commission (2005) Commission Regulation (EC) No 78/2005 of 19 January 2005 amending Regulation (EC) No 466/2001 as regards heavy metals. Available in: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2005:016:0043:0045: EN:PDF. Accessed in: 26 August 2022

  • Evans JD (1996) Straightforward statistics for the behavioral sciences. Thomson Brooks/Cole Publishing Co, Pacific Grove

    Google Scholar 

  • Ferreira MS, Marques AN, Ribeiro ROR, Conte-Junior CA, Carneiro CS, Santelli RE, Freire ASS, Clemente SC, Mársico ET (2015) Total Mercury in Carnivorous Fish from Brazilian Southeast. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 95:18–24

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ferreira MS, Mársico ET, Conte-Junior CA, Carneiro CS, Ribeiro ROR, Alva CV, Ribeiro JD, Azevedo PL (2014) Mercurial contamination and fish of commercial importance from the Itaipu estuary, Niterói, RJ, Brazil. In: Proceedings of the VI Fish Quality Control Symposium 2014

  • Figueiredo JL (1977) Manual of marine fishes from southeastern Brazil. USP, São Paulo, p 111. Available in: https://ia801308.us.archive.org/12/items/Manualdepeixesm1Figu/Manualdepeixesm1Figu.pdf. Accessed June 2022

  • Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) (2003) Heavy metal regulations—Faolex. Legal Notice No.66/2003, p 8. Available in: https://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/eri42405.pdf. Accessed June 2022

  • Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) (2007) Meeting (‎68th: 2007: Geneva, Switzerland)‎, world health organization & food and agriculture organization of the United Nations. Evaluation of certain food additives and contaminants: sixty-eighth report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives. World Health Organization, p 225. Available in: https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/43870. Accessed June 2022

  • Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2016) The living marine resources of the Eastern Central Atlantic. Volume 4: Bony fishes. Rome, Italy, p. 820

  • Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2018) FAO FishFinder. Species Fact Sheets. 2018. Available in: http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2632/en Accessed in: 21 July 2022

  • Food and Drug Administration (2001) Fish and fisheries products hazards & controls guidance, Third Edition. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Office of Seafood, 5100 Paint Branch Parkway, College Park, Maryland 20740–3835. p. 326

  • Food Standards Agency (FSA) UK (2020) Chemical contaminant monitoring. Limit for chemical contaminants. Available in: https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/chemical-contaminant-monitoring. Accessed in: 10 July 2022

  • Galimberti C, Corti I, Cressoni M, Moretti VM, Menotta S, Galli U, Cambiaghi D (2016) Evaluation of mercury, cadmium and lead levels in fish and fishery products imported by air in North Italy from extra-European Union Countries. Food Control 60:329–337

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • García-Hernández J, Ortega-Vélez MI, Contreras Paniagua AD, Aguilera- Márquez D, Leyva-García G, Torre-Cosío J (2018) Mercury Concentrations in Seafood and the Associated Risk in Women With High Fish Consumption From Coastal Villages of Sonora, Mexico. Food Chem Toxicol 120:367–377

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Genç TO, Yilmaz F (2015) Bioaccumulation indexes of metals in blue crab inhabiting specially protected area Koycegiz Lagoon (Turkey). Indian J Anim Sci 85(1):994–999

    Google Scholar 

  • Genç TO, Yulmaz F (2017) Metal accumulations in water, sediment, crab (Callinectes sapidus) and two fish species (Mugil cephalus and Anguilla anguilla) from the Koycegiz lagoon system-Turkey: an index analysis approach. Bull Environ ContamToxicol 99(1):173–181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gutiérrez AJ, Lozano G, González T, Reguera JI, Hardisson A (2006) Mercury Content in Tinned Molluscs (Mussel, Cockle, Variegated Scallop, and Razor Shell) Normally Consumed in Spain, 2005. J Food Protect 69(9):2237–2240

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hosseini M, Porur SR, Baniamam N, Amiri AMD (2014) Mercury levels in selected tissues of shrimp Panaeus merguiensis from persian gulf. Indian J Geo-Mar Sci 44(7):1025–1034

    Google Scholar 

  • Huchabee JW, Elwood JW, Hildebrand SC (1979) Accumulation of Mercury in Freshwater Biota. The Biogeochemistry of Mercury in the Environment. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 277–302

    Google Scholar 

  • International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association (IPIECA) (2014) Mercury Management in Petroleum Refining. IPIECA Good practice guide 2014. Available in: https://www.ipieca.org/resources/good-practice/mercury-management-in-petroleum-refining/. Accessed in: 02 Aug 2022

  • Kehrig HA, Malm O, Moreira I (1998) Mercury in a widely consumed fish Micropogonias furnieri (Demarest, 1823) from four main Brazilian estuaries. Sci Total Environ 213(1–3):263–271

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kehrig HA, Costa M, Malm O (2007) Estudo da contaminação por metais pesados em peixes e mexilhões da baía de Guanabara-Rio de Janeiro. Trop Oceanogr 35(1):32–50

    Google Scholar 

  • Khan MI, Zahoor M, Khan A, Gulfam N, Khisroon M (2019) Bioaccumulation of heavy metals and their genotoxic effect on freshwater mussel. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 102(1):52–58

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lackner J, Weiss M, Muller-Graf C, Greiner M (2018) Disease burden of methylmercury in the German birth cohort 2014. PLoS One 13(1):e0190409

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lan WR, Huang XG, Lin L, Li SX, Liu FJ (2019) Thermal discharge influences the bioaccumulation and bioavailability of metals in oysters: Implications of ocean warming. Environ Pollut 259:113821

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liao W, Wang G, Zhao W, Zhang M, Wu Y, Liu X, Li K (2019) Change in Mercury Speciation in Seafood After Cooking and Gastrointestinal Digestion. J Haz Mat 375:130–137

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Luiz-Silva W, Oscar-Júnior AC (2022) Climate extremes related with rainfall in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: a review of climatological characteristics and recorded trends. Nat Hazards 114:713–732

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maciel ES, Sonati JG, Lima LKF, Savay-da-Silva LK, Galvão JA, Oetterer M (2016) Similarities and distinctions of fish consumption in Brazil and Portugal measured through electronic survey. Int Food Res J 23(1):404–411

    Google Scholar 

  • Madenjian CP, Keir MJ, Whittle DM (2011) Sexual difference inmercury concentrations of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) from Lake Ontario. Chemosphere 83(7):903–908

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mahat NA, Muktar NK, Ismail R, Razak FIA, Wahab RA, Keyon ASA (2018) Toxic metals in Perna viridis mussel and surface seawater in Pasir Gudang coastal area, Malaysia, and its health implications. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25:30224–30235

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mallory ML, O’Driscoll NJ, Klapstein S, Varela JL, Ceapa C, Stokesbury MJ (2018) Methylmercury in tissues of Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrhynchus) from the Saint John River, New Brunswick, Canada. Mar Pollut Bull 126:250–254

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Maulvault AL, Machado R, Afonso C, Lourenço HM, Nunes ML, Coelho I, Langerholc T, Marques A (2011) Bioaccessibility of Hg, Cd and As in Cooked Black Scabbard Fish and Edible Crab. Food Chem Toxicol 49:2808–2815

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Morasche MS, Tubino RA, Monteiro-Neto C (2010) Feeding diet of whitemouth croaker, Micropogonias furnieri (Desmarest, 1823) (Actinopterygii, Sciaenidae) on the coastal region of Itaipu, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro State RJ. Arquivos de Ciências do Mar 43(2):87–95

    Google Scholar 

  • Moura VL, Lacerda LD (2018) Contrasting mercury bioavailability in the marine and fluvial dominated areas of the Jaguaribe River basin. Ceara, Brazil. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 101(1):49–54

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Moura VL, Rabelo JN, Bezerra MF, Silva GB, Faria VV, Rezende CE, Bastros WR, Lacerda LD (2020) Ecological and biological factors associated to mercury accumulation in batoids (Chondrichthyes: Batoidea) from northeastern Brazil. Mar Pollut Bull 161:111761

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Murillo-Cisneros DA, O’Hara TM, Castellini JM, Sánchez- González A, Elorriaga-Verplancken FR, Marmolejo-Rodríguez AJ et al (2018) Mercury concentrations iN three ray species from the Pacific coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico: variations by tissue type, sex and length. Mar Pollut Bull 126:77–85

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Murphy GW, Newcomb TJ, Orth DJ (2007) Sexual and seasonal variations of mercury in smallmouth Bass. J Freshwater Ecol 22(1):135–143

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Okati N, Esmaili-sari A (2017) Hair Mercury and Risk Assessment for Consumption of Contaminated Seafood in Residents From the Coast of the Persian Gulf, Iran. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25(1):639–657

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olmedo AP, Pla A, Hernadez F, Barbier F, Ayouni L, Gil F (2013) Determination of toxic elements (mercury, cadmium, lead, tin and arsenic) in fish and shellfish samples. Risk assessment for the consumers. Environ Int 59:63–72

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pack EC, Lee SH, Kim CH, Lim CH, Sung DG, Kim MH (2014) Effects of environmental temperature change on mercury absorption in aquatic organismsnwith respect to climate warming. J Toxicol Environ Health A 77(22–24):1477–1490

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pinheiro MAA, Boos H, Reigada ALD, Rodrigues ES, Rocha SS, Hereman MJ, Souza MR (2016) Evaluation of portunidae crabs (Decapoda: Portunoidea: Ovalipidae, Polybiidae and Portunidae). In: Red book of crustaceans of Brazil: evaluation 2010–2014, chapter 26, edn 1. Brazilian Society of Carcinology, p 29.

  • Prefeitura de Niterói (2018) Historical evolution of the uses of the lagoon system and its surroundings: elaboration of a study to analyze the environmental condition of the Piratininga-Itaipu-Niteroi peri-lagunar system. Hidroscience Consulting and Environmental Restoration. Eireli, Porto Alegre-RS, p 46. Available in: http://www.prosustentavel.niteroi.rj.gov.br/pdf/RE_P4_EVO.HIST%C3%93RICA_V02.pdf. Accessed June 2022

  • Rice KM, Walker EM, Wu M, Gillette C, Blough ER (2014) Environmental mercury and its toxic effects. J Prev Med Public Health 47(2):74–83

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues APC, Maciel PO, da Silva LCCP, Almosny NRP, Andreata JV, Bidone ED, Castilhos ZC (2011) Relationship between Mercury Concentrations in the Blood with that in the Muscle of Four Estuarine Tropical Fish Species, Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 86:357–362

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues PA, Ferrari RG, Santos LN, Conte-Junior CA (2019) Mercury in aquatic fauna contamination: a systematic review on its dynamics and potential health risks. J Environ Sci 84:205–218

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues PA, Ferrari RG, Hauser-Davis RA, Santos LN, Conte-Junior CA (2020a) Seasonal influences on swimming crab mercury levels in an eutrophic estuary located in southeastern Brazil. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27:3473–3482

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues PA, Ferrari RG, Hauser-Davis RA, Santos LN, Conte-Junior CA (2020b) Dredging Activities Carried Out in a Brazilian Estuary Affect Mercury Levels in Swimming Crabs. Int J Environ Res Public Health 17:4396

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues PA, Ferrari RG, Rosário DKA, Hauser-Davis RA, Lopes AP, Santos AFGN, Conte-Junior CA (2021a) Interactions between mercury and environmental factors: A chemometric assessment in seafood from an eutrophic estuary in southeastern Brazil. Aquatic Toxicol 236:105844

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues PA, Ferrari RG, Kato LS, Hauser-Davis HA, Conte-Junior CA (2021b) A systematic review on metal dynamics and marine toxicity risk assessment using crustaceans as bioindicators. Biol Trace Elem Res 200:881–903

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues PA, Ferrari RG, Rosário DKA, Hauser-Davis RA, Santos LN, Conte-Junior CA (2022) Mercurial Contamination: A Consumer Health Risk Assessment Concerning Seafood From a Eutrophic Estuary in Southeastern Brazil. Front Mar Sci 9(765323):1–10

    Google Scholar 

  • Saadati M, Soleimani M, Sadeghsaba M, Hemami MR (2019) Bioaccumulation of heavy metals (Hg, Cd and Ni) by sentinel crab (Macrophthalmus depressus) from sediments of Mousa Bay, Persian Gulf. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 191:109986

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Santos LN, Neves RAF, Koureiche AC, Brito JL (2021) Mercury concentration in the sentinel fish species Orthopristis ruber: Effects of environmental and biological factors and human risk assessment. Mar Pollut Bull 169:112508

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schmitd L, Figueroa JAL, Vecchia PD, Duarte FA, Mello PA, Caruso JA, Flores EMM (2018) Bioavailability of Hg and Se From Seafood After Culinary Treatments. Microchem J 139:363–371

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shen H, Kibria G, Wu RSS, Morrison P, Nugegoda D (2020) Spatial and temporal variations of trace metal body burdens of live mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis and field validation of the Artificial Mussels in Australian inshore marine environment. Chemosphere 248:126004

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shue MF, Chen WD, Bellotindos LM, Lu MC (2014) Seasonal Variations of Heavy Metals Content in Muscle and Viscera of Green-Lipped Mussel Perna viridis From Da-Peng Bay Lagoon in Taiwan. J Toxicol Environ Health, Part A 77(20):1222–1228

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Siblerud R, Mutter J, Moore E, Naumann J, Walach H (2019) A Hypothesis and Evidence That Mercury May be an Etiological Factor in Alzheimer’s Disease. Int J Environ Res Public Health 16(24):5152

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Silva DR, Paranhos R, Vianna M (2016) Spatial patterns of distribution and the influence of seasonal and abiotic factors on demersal ichthyofauna in an estuarine tropical bay. J Fish Biol 89:821–846

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor DL, Calabrese NM (2018) Mercury content of blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus) from southern New England coastal habitats: Contamination in an emergent fishery and risks to human consumers. Mar Pollut Bull 126:166–178

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) (2001) Integrated risk information system (IRIS)- Chemical Assessment Summary. Methylmercury (MeHg); CASRN 22967–92–6, 43p. Available in: https://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/iris2/chemicallanding.cfm?substance_nmbr=73. Accessed in: June, 2023

  • United States Environmental Protection Agency, US-EPA (1989) Risk assessment guidance for superfund, vol I. In: Human health evaluation manual (Part A), Interim Final. EPA 540/1–89/002. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC, p 291. Available in: https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2015-09/documents/rags_a.pdf. Accessed June 2022

  • United States Environmental Protection Agency, US-EPA (2000) Guidance for assessing chemical contamination data for use in fish advisories, vol II. In: Risk assessment and fish consumption limits EPA/823-B94–004. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC, p 383. Available in: https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2015-06/documents/volume2.pdf. Accessed June 2022

  • US Environmental Protection Agency, US-EPA (2010) Calibration curves: program use/needs. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC, p 8. Available in: https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2014-05/documents/calibration-guide-ref-final-oct2010.pdf. Accessed June 2022

  • Vieira TC, Rodrigues APDEC, Amaral PMG, De Oliveira DFC, Gonçalves RA, Rodrigues E Silva C, Bidone ED (2020) Evaluation of the bioaccumulation kinetics of toxic metals in fish (A. brasiliensis) and its application on monitoring of coastal ecosystems. Mar Pollut Bull 151:110830

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zamora-Arellano NY, Ruelas-Inzunza J, García-Hernández J, Arturo- Ilizaliturri CA, Betancourt-Lozano M (2017) Linking Fish Consumption Patterns and Health Risk Assessment of Mercury Exposure in a Coastal Community of NW Mexico. Hum Ecol Risk Assess 23(6):1505–1521

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

The authors are thankful for the financial support provided by the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ) Brazil — grant number [E-26/200.891/2021 (C.A.C.J); E-26/200.077/2022 (P.A.R.)], the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)—grant number [313119/2020–1], and the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) Brazil — Finance Code001, for the granted scholarship to J.VdeP.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Analytical and Molecular Laboratorial Center (CLAn), Institute of Chemistry (IQ), Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21941-909, Brazil

    Paloma de Almeida Rodrigues, Júlia Vianna de Pinho & Carlos Adam Conte-Junior

  2. Center for Food Analysis (NAL), Technological Development Support Laboratory (LADETEC), Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21941-598, Brazil

    Paloma de Almeida Rodrigues, Júlia Vianna de Pinho, Alexandre Mendes Ramos-Filho, Gustavo Lata Neves & Carlos Adam Conte-Junior

  3. Laboratory of Advanced Analysis in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (LAABBM), Department of Biochemistry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21941-909, Brazil

    Paloma de Almeida Rodrigues, Júlia Vianna de Pinho & Carlos Adam Conte-Junior

  4. National Institute of Health Quality Control, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, 21040-900, Brazil

    Júlia Vianna de Pinho & Carlos Adam Conte-Junior

  5. Graduate Program in Sanitary Surveillance (PPGVS), National Institute of Health Quality Control (INCQS), Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21040-900, Brazil

    Júlia Vianna de Pinho & Carlos Adam Conte-Junior

  6. Graduate Program in Veterinary Hygiene (PPGHV), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Fluminense Federal University (UFF), Vital Brazil Filho, Niterói, RJ, 24220-000, Brazil

    Carlos Adam Conte-Junior

  7. Graduate Program in Food Science (PPGCAL), Institute of Chemistry (IQ), Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21941-909, Brazil

    Carlos Adam Conte-Junior

  8. Graduate Program in Chemistry (PGQu), Institute of Chemistry (IQ), Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21941-909, Brazil

    Carlos Adam Conte-Junior

Authors
  1. Paloma de Almeida Rodrigues
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Júlia Vianna de Pinho
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Alexandre Mendes Ramos-Filho
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Gustavo Lata Neves
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Carlos Adam Conte-Junior
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

Paloma de Almeida Rodrigues: Investigation, Formal analysis, Data curation, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing.

Júlia Vianna da Anunciação de Pinho: Formal analysis, Data curation, Writing – review and editing.

Alexandre Mendes Ramos Filho: Formal analysis, Data curation, Writing – review and editing.

Gustavo Lata Neves: Formal analysis, Data curation, Writing – review and editing.

Carlos Adam Conte-Junior: Supervision, Conceptualization, Resources, Data curation, Writing –original draft, Writing – review and editing.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Paloma de Almeida Rodrigues.

Ethics declarations

Ethical approval

All animals used in this study were acquired through purchase, from fishermen duly authorized to carry out the fishing activity at the study site (Itaipu Beach, Niterói/RJ, Brazil). They are then acquired without life, as they are sold in the free fairs of fishing colonies, with no need for approval by an ethics committee to carry out the study.

Consent to participate

Not applicable.

Consent to publish

All authors involved in the study (Paloma de Almeida Rodrigues, Júlia Vianna de Pinho, Alexandre Mendes Ramos Filho, Gustavo Lata Neves, Carlos Adam Conte Júnior) participated in the writing of the manuscript and agreed with its publication in the journal Environmental Science and Pollution Research.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Additional information

Responsible Editor: Severine Le Faucheur

Publisher's note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Highlights

- Oil and industrial activities impact aquatic biota with the release of mercury;

- Hg was evaluated in fish, mussels, and crabs from a beach in southeastern Brazil;

- Although the levels were low, they were indicative of risk to consumer health;

- A seasonality assessment indicated that for most of the year, the health risk is high;

- As the mussel was the only species with low risk, its consumption can be stimulated.

Supplementary Information

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary file1 (HTML 3709 KB)

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Rodrigues, P.d., de Pinho, J.V., Ramos-Filho, A.M. et al. Mercury contamination in seafood from an aquatic environment impacted by anthropic activity: seasonality and human health risk. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 85390–85404 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-28435-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-28435-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation