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. 2022 Jul 7;73(2):131-142.
doi: 10.2478/aiht-2022-73-3611.

Fish consumption habits of pregnant women in Itaituba, Tapajós River basin, Brazil: risks of mercury contamination as assessed by measuring total mercury in highly consumed piscivore fish species and in hair of pregnant women

Ricardo Bezerra de Oliveira  1 , Domingas Machado da Silva  1 , Thamilles Santa Bárbara Sousa Franco  1 , Cláudio Ramon Sena Vasconcelos  1 , Deise Juliane Dos Anjos de Sousa  1 , Sandra Layse Ferreira Sarrazin  1 , Mineshi Sakamoto  2 , Jean-Paul Bourdineaud  3
Affiliations

Fish consumption habits of pregnant women in Itaituba, Tapajós River basin, Brazil: risks of mercury contamination as assessed by measuring total mercury in highly consumed piscivore fish species and in hair of pregnant women

Ricardo Bezerra de Oliveira et al. Arh Hig Rada Toksikol. .

Abstract
in English, Croatian

The Tapajós River basin in the Amazon region, Brazil is one of the most active gold mining areas in the world. In this study, we evaluated fish consumption habits and mercury exposure in 110 pregnant women in the city of Itaituba by measuring their total hair mercury concentrations. In addition, we investigated seasonal differences in mercury concentrations in two highly consumed piscivorous fish species, tucunaré (Cichla spp.) and pescada (Plagioscion squamosissimus). Total fish mercury concentrations (THg) during the dry season were 0.62±0.07 mg/kg for Cichla spp. and 0.73±0.08 mg/kg for P. squamosissimus. During the rainy season they were 0.39±0.04 and 0.84±0.08 mg/ kg, respectively. Of our participants 44 % declared that they ate Cichla spp. and 67 % P. squamosissimus. Mean mercury concentration in their hair was 1.6±0.2 mg/kg and was above the US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) reference dose of 1 mg/kg in 48 % of them. Mean fish THg concentrations were also above the joint Food and Drug Administration and US EPA safety limit of 0.5 mg/kg for P. squamosissimus during both seasons and for Cichla spp. during the dry season only. These results show that pregnant women should avoid consumption of these piscivorous fish species during pregnancy and call for a regular programme to monitor Hg levels in that area.

Slijev rijeke Tapajós u amazonskom području u Brazilu jedno je od najaktivnijih područja iskopavanja zlata na svijetu. U ovoj smo studiji procijenili navike konzumiranja ribe i razinu izloženosti metil-živi u 110 stanovnica Itaitube u peripartumu mjerenjem ukupne koncentracije žive u kosi (THg). Osim toga, istražili smo sezonske razlike u koncentracijama žive u dvjema najčešćim vrstama konzumnih piscivornih riba: tucunaré (Cichla spp.) i pescada (Plagioscion squamosissimus). U tih je ribljih vrsta THg tijekom sušne sezone iznosio 0,62±0,07 mg/kg za Cichla spp. te 0,73±0,08 mg/kg za P. squamosissimus. Tijekom kišne sezone koncentracija THg bila je 0,39±0,04 mg/kg za Cichla spp. i 0,84±0,08 mg/kg za P. squamosissimus. Sudionice su izjavile da su konzumirale Cichla spp. (44 %) i P. squamosissimus (67 %). Srednja koncentracija THg izmjerena u kosi bila je 1,6±0,2 mg/kg±std. Prosječna koncentracija THg u kosi bila je viša od referentne doze Američke agencije za zaštitu okoliša (krat. US EPA) koja iznosi 1 mg/kg, a čak u 48 % sudionica izmjerena je viša koncentracija. Također, srednja vrijednost koncentracija THg u ribi bila je iznad sigurnosne granice (0,5 mg/kg) za P. squamosissimus i tijekom sušne i kišne sezone, a za Cichla spp. samo tijekom sušne sezone. Rezultati istraživanja pokazuju da bi trudnice trebale izbjegavati konzumaciju ovih piscivornih ribljih vrsta. Stoga je razvidna potreba za redovitim programom praćenja razine žive na tom području.

Keywords: Cichla spp.; Plagioscion squamosissimus; hair; methylmercury; metil-živa; ukupna živa.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest

None to declare.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Geographical position of Itaituba
Figure 2
Figure 2
Variations of the Tapajós River water levels (cm) in Itaituba from July 2018 to June 2019
Figure 3
Figure 3
Relationship between mercury concentration and weight and total length of fish caught and consumed in Itaituba. Left columns: Cichla spp. (tucunaré; n=48); right columns: P. squamosissimus (pescada; n=48)
Figure 4
Figure 4
Distribution of participants by residence in and around Itaituba along the Tapajós River (Amazon, Brazil). The left panel shows residences as green dots. The lower part of the right panel shows the legend, translated as follows: Itaituba (Cidade de Itaituba); Urban area (Área urbana); Rural zone (Zona rural); Other cities (Outras cidades); Access roads (Vias deacesso) ; Water (Hidrographia); the Tapajós River (Rio Tapajós) ; Pará Municipalities (Municipios do Pará); State of Amazonas (Estado do Amazonas)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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