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. 2023 Jul 12;12(14):2686.
doi: 10.3390/foods12142686.

Effects of Age, Fulton's Condition Index (K) and Muscle Fat on Total Mercury Content in Raw, Pre-Canning and Canned Samples of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus thynnus)

Pierluigi Piras  1 , Nicolò Pietro Paolo Macciotta  2 , Domenico Meloni  3 , Andrea Sanna  4 , Maurizio Cossu  4 , Severyn Salis  4 , Giannina Chessa  4
Affiliations

Effects of Age, Fulton's Condition Index (K) and Muscle Fat on Total Mercury Content in Raw, Pre-Canning and Canned Samples of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus thynnus)

Pierluigi Piras et al. Foods. .

Abstract

A total of 30 samples of Atlantic bluefin tuna were analysed for total mercury concentration. Relationships between total mercury content and age, Fulton's condition index (K) and fat content were statistically evaluated. The effect of muscle status (raw, pre-canning, canned) on mercury content was also investigated. The average total mercury content was: 1.185 ± 0.662 mg/kg in raw, 1.481 ± 0.893 mg/kg in pre-canning and 1.393 ± 0.882 mg/kg in canned samples, respectively. Canning promotes a statistically significant increase in the concentration of mercury. The weight of fish, K and fat content are useful tools to estimate the mercury accumulation in Atlantic bluefin tuna. The results of the present study represent a contribution to the assessment of the EU mercury levels in Atlantic bluefin tuna.

Keywords: Atlantic bluefin tuna; Fulton’s condition index (K); age; fat; fixed trap; mercury.

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Conflict of interest statement

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

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Comparison of the mercury levels in raw, pre-canning and canned samples according to age group. “X” indicates the mean values, the dot indicates an outlier.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Bi-plot of the principal components analysis (PCA) carried out on the muscle fat content, Fulton’s condition index (K), and weight. Tuna of different age class have different colors.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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