Journal of Aquatic Ecology

The goal of this study was to measure the concentration of 15 heavy metals (lead, cadmium, mercury, arsenic, aluminum, vanadium, tin, and thallium, chromium, copper, manganese, zinc, nickel, iron, and cobalt) in the muscle tissue of the golden grey mullet (Liza aurata). Moreover, dayly and weekly EDI of these metals for children and adults, the allowable intake limits, and the THQ associated with consumption of this fish species were calculated compared to the risk of noncancerous diseases. To this end, 100 mature L. aurata were obtained from different parts on the shoreline of the Caspian Sea. Preparation and chemical digestion of the species were carried out in accordance with the standard instructions. The accumulation of the metals in the muscle tissue was Fe> Zn> Mn> Co> Cu> Cr> Cd> Ni> Hg> Pb> Al> Sn> As> TI> V. Concentration of the mentioned metals was lower than the WHO-approved limits proposed for humans, and thus the results reflected the relative health of golden grey mullets. The risk of noncancerous diseases with each of the 15 metals was lower than 1. Moreover, the total hazard index (HI) was 0.065 in this research, indicating that the consumption of golden grey mullet does not have a harmful effect on consumers. The highest risk of non-carcinogenic diseases in toxic metals was mercury and in non-toxic metals was manganese. Also, the accumulation of heavy metals in fish caught from the coasts of the Guilan and Golestan provinces were higher than the coast of Mazandaran province.