Abstract:
In the present study, the concentrations of cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), aluminium (Al), mercury (Hg), nickel (Ni), manganese (Mn), and cobalt (Co) in the muscle tissues of three shrimp species (Plesionika martia, Plesionika edwardsii, and Aristeus antennatus) from the northeast Mediterranean Sea in Turkey were investigated. Inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES-Perkin Elmer Optima 8000) was used to determine heavy metals in the samples. The concentrations were expressed as mg/kg wet weight. Cd, Pb, Hg, Ni, and Co were not detected in muscle tissues of the species. Mn was detected only in A. antennatus. The order of heavy metal concentrations were found as Zn>Cu>Fe>A1 in muscle tissue samples for P. martia and P edwardsii. Also, the mean concentrations of heavy metals in A. antennatus were Zn>Cu>Fe>Mn>A1. The results showed significant differences in Cu, Fe, and Zn concentrations among the three shrimp species (p<0.05). The comparison of our results with previous studies showed that the metal levels of species can vary even when caught from a similar area. In this study, the concentrations of metals in the muscle tissue are less than the permissible limits set for heavy metals by food regulations.
