Background: One of the main water contaminants are Hg, Cd, Pb and As. The chain of contamination of these metals and metalloid follows a cyclical order: Industry, atmosphere, land, water, phytoplankton, zooplankton, fish, and humans. Currently, Hg, Cd, Pb and As researches are of interest because consumption of fish with high toxic metal and metalloid concentrations affects human health. Objective: Provide information on the characteristics of Hg, Cd, Pb and As in the problematic of fishing resource contamination, their implications on human health, and international evidence on studies conducted on Caranx, Scomberomorus, Epinephelus, Euthynnus, Lutjanus, thunnus and Megalops fish genera. Methods: Database, Science Direct, Pub Med, Escopus, Springer Link, and Scopus, available information was reviewed using the keywords: Heavy metals, water pollution, fish, mercury, cadmium, lead, arsenic, health risk, regulations, biomagnification, and bioaccumulation. Results: The metals that pose the highest risks for human health are mercury, cadmium, lead, and arsenic which cause important complications in the nervous system, kidneys, bones, lungs, and cardiovascular system due to their toxicity and possible carcinogenic effect. Fish contents of Hg, Cd, Pb and As varies depending on the zone, environmental conditions, the contamination level of the fishing site, and the characteristics of the fish, being some fish more prone to accumulating higher concentrations of these metals in their muscles; among the species, the metal that showed the highest risk was mercury, being in high concentrations in the largest, most enduring predatory fish. Conclusions: Studies submitted in this review, may be used as the base for future comparisons with Hg, Cd, Pb and As concentration values in different fish studies for the Caranx, Scomberomorus, Epinephelus, Euthynnus, Lutjanus, and Megalops genera in order to be able to determine consumption recommendations and warnings.Key words: Fishes, Water pollution, Mercury, Cadmium, Lead, Arsenic RESUMEN Antecedentes: Uno de los principales agentes contaminantes en las aguas son Hg, Cd, Pb y As. La cadena de contaminación de estos metales sigue un orden cíclico: industria, atmósfera, suelo, agua, fitoplancton, zooplancton, peces y humanos. Las investigaciones en Hg, Cd, Pb y As son de interés en la actualidad ya que el consumo de pescado con altas concentraciones de estos metales y metaloides tóxicos afecta la salud humana. Objetivo: Ofrecer información de las características del Hg, Cd, Pb y As en la problemática de contaminación de los recursos pesqueros, sus implicaciones para la salud humana y evidencias internacionales de los estudios realizados en los peces de los generos Caranx, Scomberomorus,

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The Gulf of Urabá, currently considered a national strategic ecoregion, could be threatened by the presence of heavy metals such as mercury (Hg), lead (Pb), and cadmium (Cd), which directly affect the aquatic ecosystem. In Colombia, investigations on marine species pollution are scarce; however, their products are consumed. The aim of this study was to quantify the contents of Hg, Pb, and Cd in muscle and in waste material (head-gills, viscera, fins-tail), in one of one of the most commercialized resources, the crevalle jack (Caranx hippos), and to determine their presence in some of the body portions that are used in the production of sub-products. The concentrations of Hg, Pb, and Cd were compared between the waste material and muscle of the crevalle jack fish that were caught from each of the following sites the community usually uses to catch them: Bahía Candelaria, Bahía Marirrío, Bocas del Roto, and Bocas del Atrato. They were captured every 1 year in each climatic period. All body portions exceeded the maximum allowed limits for Pb (0.667-23.378 mg kg); the highest Hg concentrations were found in muscle (0.515-7.019 mg kg) and viscera (0.172-1.883 mg kg), and for Cd, the parts with the highest levels were the fins-tail (0.040-0.15 mg kg) and viscera (0.040-0.174 mg kg). Considering the obtained results, it is not recommended to use the waste material for the production of fish meal or fish silage due to the adverse effects it could cause on both animals and humans.

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