Metal Contamination in the Muscles of Three Fish Species: Cyprinus carpio, Sander lucioperca and Oreochromis niloticus, in Moroccan Continental Waters

Et Al., Ouahb

doi:10.21608/ejabf.2025.427242

Metal Contamination in the Muscles of Three Fish Species: Cyprinus carpio, Sander lucioperca and Oreochromis niloticus, in Moroccan Continental Waters

Author

Ouahb et al.

10.21608/ejabf.2025.427242

Abstract

Metal pollution is one of the major risks facing the world today. Heavy metals, when present in the environment at high concentrations, can pose serious threats to human health. Therefore, assessing metal contamination in aquatic organisms, particularly fish, is crucial for predicting potential contamination in humans. This work involved evaluating the concentration of heavy metals in the muscle tissue of three freshwater fish species: Cyprinus carpio, Sander lucioperca, and Oreochromis niloticus captured in Al Massira Dam Lake. Tissue analysis reveals the presence of heavy metals such as zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), chromium (Cr), and aluminum (Al). These metals are found in varying proportions in the three fish species studied. The results showed that the common carp (Cyprinus carpio) exhibited the highest levels of heavy metal bioaccumulation (125.13mg/ kg), followed by the pike-perch (Sander lucioperca) (98.77mg/ kg) and the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) (91.31mg/ kg).

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