Abstract

URBANO DE ARAUJO, Marcos A; VITORIA DE MOURA, Maria F  and  BORGES DE CARVALHO, Genickson. Determination of metals of toxicological importance in the bivalve Anadara notabilis (Röding, 1798) of Galinhos, coast of Rio grande do norte, Brazil. Acta toxicol. argent. [online]. 2010, vol.18, n.2, pp.54-58. ISSN 1851-3743.

Bivalve molluscs are consumed throughout the world, constituting a natural resource with good acceptance by the population. The mollusc Anadara notabilis (know as eared ark) was chosen for this study due to its characteristic size, much larger than most common shellfish, and the lack of toxicological information found in literature for this class of mollusks when considering metal ions toxicity. Metal ions were measured by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES), method described by U.S. EPA 6010C. Results showed that several toxic metals were present in shellfish, however only chrome was measured in levels higher than those allowed by Brazilian legislation. Among those classified as toxic metals, copper showed a value of 5.7 mg / kg, nickel of 4.23 mg / kg and chromium of 1.7 mg / kg, when considering whole shellfish samples. As molluscs are able to accumulate metals in their body, for its consumption care should be taken regarding the areas in close proximity to their collection or cultivation, including prevention of factors that influence contamination.

Keywords : Molluscs; Anadara notabilis; Metals; Optical emission spectroscopy inductively coupled plasma.

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