Heavy metals, parasitologic and oxidative stress biomarker investigations in Heterotis niloticus from Lekki Lagoon, Lagos, Nigeria
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Heavy metal toxicity in aquatic life as a result of human activities poses a grave health threat to water quality,
aquatic and human life. Parasites may serve as indicators of heavy metal pollution. This research investigated the
health status of the fish Heterotis niloticus viz-a-viz quality of the water and sediments in Lekki lagoon, parasitic
infection, presence of heavy metals and oxidative stress response in the liver and intestine of the fish. Parasites
recovered were also analyzed for the extent of bioaccumulation of heavy metals. The metals in water, sediments,
parasites, and fish were analyzed using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. Heavy metal concentrations in the
surface water were generally below regulatory limits of World Health Organization. Sediment had high levels of
aluminium (124.78 mg/kg) and iron (327.41 mg/kg); other heavy metals were below regulatory limits. Tenuisentis
niloticus, an acanthocephalan, was the only parasite recovered. Seventy (70) out of 100 fish sampled were
infected with the parasite. T. niloticus bioaccumulated Cd, Ni, and Pb between 65 to 100 times more than the liver
and 12 to 200 times more than the intestine. Other metals bioaccumulated from the host tissues by the parasite
had the magnitude between 1 to 12 times as the liver and 1 to 30 times as the intestine. There were significant
differences in the activities of antioxidant enzymes between the parasitized and non-parasitized fishes. Fish
tissues also showed histological alterations, ranging from mild infiltration of inflammatory cells to moderate
inflammation and haemorrhagic lesions. Human activities that introduce stressors into the lagoon should be
controlled.
Keywords
Q Science (General), QH301 Biology