Bioaccumulation of Trace Elements in Ruditapes philippinarum from China: Public Health Risk Assessment Implications

Abstract

The Manila clam Ruditapes philippinarum is one of the most important commercial bivalve species consumed in China. Evaluated metal burden in bivalve molluscs can pose potential risks to public health as a result of their frequent consumption. In this study, concentrations of 10 trace elements (Cu, Zn, Mn, Se, Ni, Cd, Cr, Pb, Hg and As) were determined in samples of the bivalve Ruditapes philippinarum, collected from nine mariculture zones along the coast of China between November and December in 2010, in order to evaluate the status of elemental metal pollution in these areas. Also, a public health risk assessment was untaken to assess the potential risks associated with the consumption of clams. The ranges of concentrations found for Cu, Zn, Mn, Se, Ni, Cd, Cr, Pb, Hg and As in R. philippinarum were 12.1–38.0, 49.5–168.3, 42.0–68.0, 4.19–8.71, 4.76–14.32, 0.41–1.11, 0.94–4.74, 0.32–2.59, 0.03–0.23 and 0.46–11.95 mg·kg−1 dry weight, respectively. Clear spatial variations were found for Cu, Zn, Cr, Pb, Hg and As, whereas Mn, Se, Ni, and Cd did not show significant spatial variation. Hotspots of trace element contamination in R. philippinarum can be found along the coast of China, from the north to the south, especially in the Bohai and Yellow Seas. Based on a 58.1 kg individual consuming 29 g of bivalve molluscs per day, the values of the estimated daily intake (EDI) of trace elements analyzed were significantly lower than the values of the accepted daily intake (ADI) established by Joint Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization Expert Committee on Food Additives (JFAO/WHO) and the guidelines of the reference does (RfD) established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). Additionally, the risk of trace elements to humans through R. philippinarum consumption was also assessed. The calculated hazard quotients (HQ) of all trace elements were less than 1. Consequently, there was no obvious public risk from the intake of these trace elements through R. philippinarum consumption.

The impacts of As accumulation under different pH levels: Comparing Ruditapes decussatus and Ruditapes philippinarum biochemical performance

“…Similar results were found for R. decussatus (0.15-0.95 kg) and R. philippinarum (0.08-0.81 kg), collected from the Ria de Aveiro, Óbidos lagoon (Velez et al, 2015a(Velez et al, , 2015b and from the coast of China (Yang et al, 2013), to exceed the PTWI for As.…”

Biochemical performance of native and introduced clam species living in sympatry: The role of elements accumulation and partitioning

“…In Portugal around 58 kg/cap/year of seafood is consumed, being the clams among the most consumed species (Willemsen, 2003;INE, 2013;DGRM, 2014). However, comparing the present results, with other ecosystems, consumers of clams from Ria de Aveiro, Portugal (Velez et al, 2015a,b) and coast of China (Yang et al, 2013) need to eat less amount (0.13 kg and 0.20 kg, respectively) of calms in one week to exceed PTWI for As.…”

“…Also, Yang et al (2013) found higher concentrations of Cu (2.9e5.4 mg kg À1 DW) and lower or similar concentrations of As, Cr, Ni and Pb (0.6e0.9, 0.2 to 0.3, 1.2 to 1.8 and 0.1 mg kg À1 DW, respectively) in R. philippinarum from China (Yang et al, 2013). Higher accumulation of As, Cr, Ni, Pb and Cu by R. philippinarum was previously reported in Atlantic coast, Spain (18.9e64.0, 1.9 to 5.7, 0.15 to 8.7, 0.5 to 2.6 and 8.2e29.0 mg kg À1 DW) and Venice lagoon, Italy (12.6e32.2,9.6 to 35.5,0.4 to 1.9 and 5.1e26.0 mg kg À1 DW) by Usero et al (1997) and Sfriso et al (2008), respectively.…”

Pollution status of the Bohai Sea: An overview of the environmental quality assessment related trace metals

“…Cd in fish species from Qinhuangdao had higher concentrations than that from Huilai, the Pearl River Estuary, Zhejiang and Haikou . Yang et al (2013) also showed that along the coast of China, Qinhuangdao was one of the hotspots for the trace element contamination in bivalve R. philippinarum.…”

“…This showed that the economic mollusks were polluted to some extent. Hazard quotients of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn in fish species and bivavel R. philippinarum collected from Qinhuangdao were all less than 1, manifesting there was no obvious health risk from the intake of these marine organisms (Yang et al, 2013;. A survey made a historical comparison of concentrations in marine organisms and demonstrated that the concentrations of As, Cd, Hg and Pb in most benthic mussel samples collected from the Bohai Sea showed a decreasing trend or remained steady (Liu et al, 2011c).…”