From tailings to tables: Risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in edible crops cultivated in mine tailing impacted soils

From tailings to tables: Risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in edible crops cultivated in mine tailing impacted soils | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article From tailings to tables: Risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in edible crops cultivated in mine tailing impacted soils Amanda Duim Ferreira, Heloisa Farineli Corveloni, Alexys Friol Boim, and 5 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6568816/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 01 Oct, 2025 Read the published version in Environmental Geochemistry and Health → Version 1 posted 11 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The deposition of mine tailings in agricultural ecosystems raises concerns about the risks to human health, particularly in areas where the dissolution of mineral phases can release potentially toxic elements (PTEs). Soils and crops cultivated in the Rio Doce estuary, which has been receiving iron-rich mine tailings since 2015, were collected in August 2021 to evaluate the total concentrations of PTEs in cultivated plant species (cocoa, cassava, and bananas) in the estuary. We estimated the risks of consuming these products by calculating the Hazard Quotient (HQ), Hazard Index (HI), and Total Hazard Index (THI). Our results showed that the Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb concentrations in the edible parts of the plants exceeded the threshold values in all the crops studied (cocoa beans, banana fruits, and cassava rhizomes). In addition, there was a possible non-carcinogenic risk associated with the consumption of banana fruits by children (THI >1). For adults, there was no probable risk of consuming the products from the studied plants (HQ, HI, and THI <1). In conclusion, the association between PTEs and Fe oxides, which often act to reduce PTEs' phytoavailability, was not an efficient mechanism in the areas studied. This inefficiency raises concerns regarding the risk associated with food production in such environments. metal pollution acceptable daily intake human health risk assessment iron oxides Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Highlights Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb exceeded safe limits in edible crops from the Rio Doce estuary Banana consumption may pose non-carcinogenic health risks to children (THI > 1) Iron oxides failed to limit PTE uptake by crops in redox-active estuarine soils PTEs levels in edible crops challenge claims of tailings’ inertness Bioaccessibility assessments are an urgent need in mine tailing-impacted soils From tailings to tables: Risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in edible crops cultivated in mine tailing impacted soils 1. Introduction Globally, over 600 million people have experienced health problems due to unsafe food (WHO, 2024 ), which has resulted in 420,000 deaths annually (Miller et al., 2021 ). In this sense, food security, recognized as an essential component of Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger), is one of the most important global challenges (Berry et al., 2015 ). Food contamination by potentially toxic elements (PTEs) such as Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb represents one of the most important challenges in food safety (Zhao and Talha, 2021 ). Food contamination by PTEs arises from food processing, packaging, and contaminated water and soil from effluents, pesticides, fertilizers, and wastes (Ahmed et al., 2019 ; Angon et al., 2024 ). Waste and mine tailings can significantly affect food security by degrading land, disrupting agricultural activities, and contaminating soil and water (Hou et al., 2020 ; Wegenast and Beck, 2020 ). Mining activities discharge tailings containing hazardous trace elements such as manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), barium (Ba) and zinc (Zn). These contaminants can accumulate in soil and water, posing risks to crop quality and human health throughout the food chain(Aendo et al., 2022 ; Hou et al., 2020 ). Since PTEs are non-biodegradable, they are biomagnified into body tissues, causing severe health risks, including gastric, neurological, hematological, renal, and cardiac disorders (Pelletier et al., 2025 ); the disruption of the central nervous system; reproductive failure; and genotoxicity (Wu et al., 2010 ; Zheng et al., 2010 ). Children are more susceptible to PTE exposure and toxicity than adults because of their fast growth rates (Kurt-Karakus, 2012 ; Peña-Fernández et al., 2014 ). The neurological effects of Pb in children have been highlighted as highly detrimental and irreversible (Zanjani et al., 2017 ). Furthermore, exposure to high levels of Cr, Ni, and Cu can cause acute and chronic toxicity in humans by binding to proteins and enzymes, altering their activity, and causing damage (e.g., changes in immunologic function in the lungs, and imbalances in the bone remodeling process) (Mohmand et al., 2015 ). In November 2015, the Fundão mine tailings dam in Minas Gerais state, Brazil, collapsed, discharging over 50 million m 3 of mine tailings contaminated with PTEs (Bernardino et al., 2019 ; Gomes et al., 2017 ; Queiroz et al., 2018 ). Previous studies have reported that, owing to the characteristics of mine tailings (rich in iron oxides) and the course along the Rio Doce basin (over 600 km), a significant amount of PTEs has been deposited in the estuarine region (Barcellos et al., 2022 ; Queiroz et al., 2021 ). Since 2015, various studies have documented that deposited tailings are acting as a source of PTEs in different compartments, such as water, fauna, flora, and soil (Bernardino et al., 2019 ; Ferreira et al., 2024b , 2024a ; Gabriel et al., 2020 ; Queiroz et al., 2021 ). Consequently, there is a growing concern about the deposition of iron mine tailings in the estuarine region of the Rio Doce and globally, due to possible dam failures and the potential contamination of agroecosystems by PTEs associated with these materials (Duarte et al., 2021 ; Gabriel et al., 2020 ; Queiroz et al., 2021 ). Blood samples from individuals living in areas affected by mine tailings showed high levels of exposure to aluminum (Al), As, mercury (Hg), and Ni (Paulelli et al., 2023), indicating that further studies are required to evaluate the sources of this contamination. Water intake was identified as an important source of exposure to Al and Ni (Paulelli et al., 2023); however, there are no studies regarding contamination throughout food production and consumption. Given this, we hypothesized that PTEs - released due to the reductive dissolution of iron oxides deposited in estuarine soil (Barcellos et al., 2022 ; Queiroz et al., 2021 )- would accumulate in edible plant species, posing a risk to human health. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated the total PTE concentrations in different edible parts of plants and soils from an estuary area. Additionally, we performed solid-phase geochemical fractionation to identify the soil fractions associated with Fe and other PTEs. Furthermore, we assessed the human health risks of consuming fruits and tubers cultivated in the affected area by determining the non-carcinogenic risk using the Hazard Quotient (HQ), Hazard Index (HI), and Total Hazard Index (THI). 2. Material and Methods 2.1 Study site characterization The study area was in the Rio Doce estuary, in the municipality of Linhares, Espírito Santo (Fig. 1 A). The climate of the region is categorized as Aw (humid and tropical climates (Alvares et al., 2013 )), with average temperatures above 18°C in the coldest month and average annual precipitation exceeding 1,500 mm. The river regime aligns with the rainfall pattern, experiencing peak flooding from December to March and particularly low water levels from August to September (Bernardino et al., 2015 ). The region is characterized by subsistence farming, featuring the cultivation of crops such as bananas ( Musa spp., B), cassava ( Manihot esculenta , C), and cocoa ( Theobroma cacao , D). These three crops are important staple foods in the region and constitute a considerable portion of the local population's diet. Cultivating Musa spp., M. esculenta , and T. cacao remains an essential part of the local economy, and it continues to provide food security for many people in the region. The selection of these agricultural areas was based on their importance to the local population's food supply and their proximity to the Rio Doce floodplain, which has been affected by the “Mariana Disaster,” one of the largest dam failures in the world(Carmo et al., 2017 ). The dam rupture and mine tailing deposition in the estuarine environment led to a marked increase in the concentrations of metals such as iron (Fe), Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn in the soils and sediments of the Rio Doce estuary (Ferreira et al., 2024b , 2022b ; Gabriel et al., 2020 ; Queiroz et al., 2022b , 2021 , 2018 ). These concentrations have exceeded the limits recommended by Brazilian legislation, indicating significant pollution (Gomes et al., 2017 ; Queiroz et al., 2018 ). The reductive dissolution of iron oxyhydroxides, influenced by organic matter inputs by plants (Ferreira et al., 2022b ; Queiroz et al., 2022b , 2022a ), has led to a significant increase in the bioavailability of Fe and other PTEs, such as Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn, indicating potential chronic contamination in the estuary (Barcellos et al., 2022 ; Queiroz et al., 2021 ). PTEs immobilization into sulfidic minerals (e.g. pyrite) plays a key role in estuarine soils (Machado et al., 2014; Otero et al., 2023). However, this process is limited in the Rio Doce’s estuarine soil due to low sulfate inputs (Ferreira et al., 2021 ; Queiroz et al., 2018 ), which highlights the need for ongoing environmental monitoring and remediation efforts to mitigate the long-term effects on the ecosystems, local communities, and food security. 2.2 Soil and plant sampling To characterize the studied area (Fig. 1 A) soil samples were collected in six replicates using a stainless-steel Dutch auger at 0–20 cm depth. These samples were preserved by freezing (-20ºC) to maintain their integrity until subsequent chemical and physical analysis. Along with soil sampling, the roots, stems, leaves, and fruits of Musa spp . (Fig. 1 B), M. esculenta (Fig. 1 C), and T. cacao (Fig. 1 D) were collected in six replicates. The plant material was carefully washed with deionized water. Edible parts (fruits and rhizomes) were peeled, and the fresh weight was measured. Then, all plant parts were dried in a forced air oven at 65ºC until constant weight and ground using a Willey® knife mill. 2.3 PTE total concentrations in soil and plant compartments The total PTE concentrations were determined from soil and plant samples through microwave-assisted acid digestion, following the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) method 3052 (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 1996 ). Plant and soil acid digestion involved digesting 0.25 g of finely ground material in Teflon tubes. The process included the addition of concentrated nitric acid (HNO 3 ), hydrofluoric acid (HF), and hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) to the tubes. Subsequently, the tubes were sealed and subjected to digestion in a microwave oven, with the temperature reaching 180 ± 5°C in 5 min and remaining at 180 ± 5 ºC for 9.5 min. Following partial cooling, the HF in the resulting extract was neutralized by adding 5 ml of 3% boric acid (H 3 BO 3 ). The extracts were filtered and transferred to a 100-mL volumetric flask, where the remaining volume was filled with Milli-Q water. To guarantee the accuracy and quality of the analysis, each set of 18 samples underwent acid digestion along with an analytical blank and an internal standard. For plant extraction, a tropical forage (RM-Agro E1001a; Brachiaria brizantha cv. Marandu - EMBRAPA; Nogueira et al., 2016) was used as an internal standard. For the soil samples, reference material NBS 1646a (estuarine sediment from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST, 2004) was used as an internal standard. 2.4 Soil geochemical fractionation of iron (Fe) and PTEs Prior to the sequential extraction process, the amount of water in the soil samples was determined by drying a subsample at 105ºC, obtaining the moisture percentage based on the weight difference relative to the weight of the wet sample. Then, the sequential extraction was performed using bulk soil samples collected from all sites. For this, 2-g wet samples were weighed, and after each extraction step, the supernatant was centrifuged at 3,000 rpm for 15 min and filtered. The remaining soil was subsequently rinsed with 20 mL Milli-Q water. The mixture underwent centrifugation at 3,000 rpm for 15 min and was discarded. This procedure was carried out to minimize the potential interference of the pre-reagent in the subsequent extraction. Additionally, all the solutions were purged with N 2 for at least 1 h before use to avoid the oxidation of reduced Fe and other PTE forms. Following this method, six operationally distinct Fe fractions were identified (Ferreira et al., 2007 ; Otero et al., 2009 ): EX - exchangeable and soluble Fe and PTEs : extracted with 30 mL of 1-mol L − 1 MgCl 2 (pH 7.0) shaken continuously for 30 min. CA - acid-soluble Fe and PTEs (e.g., those associated with carbonates): extracted with 30 mL of 1-mol L − 1 NaOAc (pH 5.0) by shaking for 5 h. FR - easily reducible Fe and PTEs (i.e., the first pool of short-range-ordered oxides to undergo reductive dissolution): extracted with 30 mL of 0.04-mol L − 1 hydroxylamine hydrochloride diluted in 25% acetic acid (vol/vol). Extraction involved shaking for 6 h at 30°C. LP - reducible Fe and PTEs (i.e., the second pool of short-range-ordered oxides that undergo reductive dissolution): extracted with 30 mL of 0.04-mol L − 1 hydroxylamine hydrochloride diluted in 25% acetic acid (vol/vol). Extraction involved shaking for 6 h at 96°C. OX - Fe and PTEs associated with crystalline oxides : extracted with 20 mL of a solution containing 0.25-mol L − 1 sodium citrate and 0.11-mol L − 1 sodium bicarbonate, carefully adding 3 g of sodium dithionite. The extraction was carried out by shaking for 30 min at 75°C. PY - Fe and PTEs associated with sulfides (e.g., pyrite): extracted with 10 mL of concentrated HNO 3 , by shaking for 2 h at room temperature. Before this step, the residue from the F5 step was treated to eliminate PTEs associated with silicates and organic matter. The silicates were removed with 20 mL of 10-mol L − 1 HF and agitated for 16 h, followed by the addition of 3 g of H 3 BO 3 and 8 h of agitation at room temperature. Organic matter removal was achieved with 15 mL of concentrated sulfuric acid (H 2 SO 4 ), which was shaken for 2 h at room temperature. 2.5 Fe and PTE determination in analytical extracts The Fe and PTE concentrations in the extracts of all matrices (plant compartments and soil extractions) were determined by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES, Thermo Fisher Scientific®, 1Cap6300 Duo model) following the 6010C protocol from USEPA (USEPA, 1997 ). To guarantee the reliability of the data, all determinations were performed in triplicate, and the calibration curve solutions were prepared with standard solutions for ICP OES (TraceCERT®). 2.6 Quality assurance The average recoveries for the targeted elements in NBS 1646a ranged from 90 to 105%, and for RM-Agro E1001a, they ranged from 82 to 122%, demonstrating a consistent and accurate recovery range. Moreover, all replicates' relative standard deviations were consistently below 10%. The analytical blanks exhibited PTE concentrations below the quantification limit (which varied from 0.01 mg L − 1 to 0.1 mg L − 1 , depending on the element). 2.78 Health risk assessment The health risks associated with PTEs in the edible plant compartments of Musa spp ., M. esculenta , and T. cacao were assessed following USEPA (EPA, 2024 ) guidelines, specifically for non-carcinogenic risk evaluation. Non-carcinogenic risk was determined using the HQ, which represents the ratio between the average daily intake (ADI, mg kg − 1 day − 1 ) of a chemical substance and its corresponding reference dose (RfD; detailed in Table S2). Equations 1 and 2 were used for this purpose. Table S3 provides the parameters and values utilized for risk calculation (e.g., ingestion rate and body weight) in both children ( 18 years), according to USEPA and Environmental Company of the State of São Paulo (CETESB, 2023 ). They were derived from the annual per-capita household food purchase data for each food group in the southeastern region of Brazil, as reported by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE, 2021 ). \(\:ADI\:=\:\frac{C\times\:IR\:\times\:\:ED\times\:EF}{BW\:\times\:\:ATnc\:\times\:\:CF\:}\:\) Eq. 1 \(\:HQ\:=\:\frac{ADI}{RfD}\) Eq. 2 where ADI = average daily intake (mg kg − 1 bw day − 1 ), C = exposure concentration of PTEs in plant compartments (mg kg − 1 fw ), IR = ingestion rate (kg fw day − 1 ), CF = weight conversion factor from dry base to wet base cultures (-), ED = exposure duration (years), EF = exposure frequency (days year − 1 ), BW = body weight (kg), and AT = averaging time = ED \(\:\times\:\) 365 d. RfD = reference dose of PTEs for oral ingestion (mg kg − 1 bw day − 1 ). The HI for individual fruits was calculated according to Mohammadpour et al. ( 2022 ; Eq. 3). Then, a comprehensive assessment of the potential non-carcinogenic impacts associated with all PTEs (Al, Ba, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Fe, Pb, Mn, Ni, and Zn) was performed using the THI (Eq. 4)(Mohammadpour et al., 2022 ). THI is a key metric for assessing the potential non-carcinogenic health risks associated with exposure to multiple contaminants (Alsafran et al., 2021 ). This integrated approach thoroughly examines individual fruits and the collective impact of various heavy metals, providing a comprehensive understanding of their potential non-carcinogenic effects. \(\:HI\:=\:{\varSigma\:{HQ}_{PTE,\:by\:fruit}}_{}\) Eq. 3 \(\:THI\:=\:\varSigma\:HI=\:{HI}_{cassava}+{HI}_{banana}+{HI}_{cocoa}\) Eq. 4 2.9 Statistical analysis The data were subjected to a normality test (Shapiro–Wilk) and were not normally distributed (p < 0.05). Spearman’s correlation coefficients were calculated for all variables because there were no assumptions about the data distribution. The R software was used to produce graphs and perform statistical analyses (R Core Team, 2025 ). 3. Results and Discussion 3.1 PTE total concentration in contaminated soils Iron (60.4±7.1 g kg − 1 ), Al (17.0±2.0 g kg − 1 ), and Mn (812.1±304.9 mg kg − 1 ) had the highest mean total concentrations in the soils (Table 1 ). Regarding the total concentrations of PTEs, the concentrations of Ba, Co, Cr, and Ni exceeded the threshold for soils set by Brazilian legislation (CONAMA, 2009 ). The average Ba concentration was 209.2±49.1 mg kg − 1 , surpassing the established agriculture prevention threshold value of 150 mg kg − 1 (CONAMA, 2009 ). The average Co concentration was 27.2±3.5 mg kg − 1 , representing an 8% increase over the established prevention threshold value of 25 mg kg − 1 (CONAMA, 2009 ). Chromium in the soils exhibited an average of 21% higher concentrations (94.4±13.3 mg kg − 1 ; Table 1 ) compared to the prevention threshold of 75 mg kg − 1 . The total Ni concentration was, on average, 34% higher, reaching 45.2±5.2 mg kg − 1 , compared to the prevention threshold of 30 mg kg − 1 (Table 1 ). On the other hand, the total concentrations of other PTEs, including As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn, fell within the acceptable limits outlined by Brazilian legislation. The total concentrations of Ba, Cr, Co, and Ni in agricultural lands vary significantly across different regions, influenced by industrial activities and agricultural practices (Alexakis et al., 2021 ; Badawy et al., 2022 ; Li et al., 2020 ). In China, for instance, Cr concentrations in cultivated soils ranged from 1.5 to 820 mg kg − 1 (Li et al., 2020 ), with an average concentration of 78.9 mg kg − 1 , indicating significant contamination from human activities (Li et al., 2020 ; Zhang et al., 2016 ). Similarly, the Cr concentration in soils surrounding chromate factories in Turkey was, on average, 80 mg kg − 1 (Köleli and Halisdemir, 2005 ). The Co concentrations in this study were within the range of contaminated agricultural soils worldwide (Alexakis et al., 2021 ). The reported values vary widely, ranging from below 5 mg kg − 1 to over 30 mg kg − 1 (Alexakis et al., 2021 ). For instance, the soil of agricultural fields contaminated by a thermal power plant and cement factory in India showed total cobalt concentrations ranging from 9.7 to 19.3 mg kg − 1 , values considered to be above typical soil concentrations (Sharma et al., 2018 ). Nickel levels in soil can also vary widely depending on the soil parent material and pollution sources (Badawy et al., 2022 ; Hu et al., 2017 ). Significant yield reductions in vegetables such as cabbage and radish were recorded in cultivated soils in Ontario, due to the Ni concentration in soils reaching up to 6,455 mg kg − 1 (Frank et al., 1982 ). Given these examples, PTEs with concentrations exceeding the threshold for cultivated soils, as set by the CONAMA resolution (CONAMA, 2009 ), pose remarkable risks, including soil degradation, compromised crop quality, and environmental contamination, with implications for both human health and ecosystem integrity (Hou et al., 2020 ). Table 1 Total concentrations of potentially toxic elements in cultivated soils at Rio Doce estuary. Elements Unit M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao Threshold* Fe g kg − 1 54.4 ± 2.7 60.3 ± 7.3 63.4 ± 6.8 - Al 16.8 ± 1.9 16.4 ± 2.0 17.8 ± 1.9 - Mn mg kg − 1 935.9 ± 285.5 766.3 ± 293.4 796.0 ± 333.1 - Ba 267.4 ± 34.2 177.5 ± 61.5 182.8 ± 51.2 150 Cd 1.9 ± 0.4 2.4 ± 0.8 2.4 ± 0.9 3 Co 30.0 ± 3.5 25.4 ± 3.6 27.6 ± 2.3 25 Cr 81.5 ± 5.1 93.8 ± 14.0 101.5 ± 10.5 75 Cu 15.0 ± 6.1 16.0 ± 5.5 16.7 ± 4.7 60 Ni 40.8 ± 2.0 44.56 ± 5.7 48.1 ± 4.1 30 Pb 70.5 ± 12.9 70.8 ± 5.8 71.8 ± 7.7 100 Zn 85.9 ± 2.3 86.6 ± 11.4 96.0 ± 9.5 300 *Threshold limits according to CONAMA ( 2009 ). 3.2 Fe geochemical fractionation in mine tailing impacted soils The geochemical fractionation of the solid phase revealed that iron predominantly formed associations with crystalline oxides (Fe-OX; Fig. 2 ). The Fe-OX fraction accounted for 73.6% of the pseudo-total Fe concentration, followed by the Fe-FR fraction, constituting an average of 24% (Fig. 2 ), and the Fe-LP fraction (on average, 1.9% of the pseudo-total Fe concentration). The soluble and exchangeable Fe concentrations (i.e., Fe-EX), as well as Fe-CA and Fe-PY, represented less than 0.1% of the pseudo-total Fe concentrations. Similarly, the geochemical fractionation revealed that 87% of the pseudo-total concentration of PTEs were accounted in the Fe oxides fractions (i.e., FR, LP and OX, Table S4). These findings align with those of previous studies, such as those conducted in the soils of the Rio Doce estuary, where elements such as Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb have been predominantly associated with Fe oxides, specifically in fractions FR, LP, and OX (Queiroz et al., 2021 , 2018 ). Iron oxides can act as a sink for PTEs owing to adsorption or coprecipitation, facilitating the immobilization of PTEs (Warren and Alloway, 2003 ). Some studies have indicated a decreased mobility of PTEs and decreased plant uptake due to the application of Fe grits in contaminated soils (Houben et al., 2012 ; Kumpiene et al., 2006 ; Yang et al., 2015 ). However, estuarine soils are subjected to a redox-active environment, where the dissolutive reduction of Fe oxides is microbial-mediated in the organic matter decomposition process, which acts as an electron donor under suboxic and anoxic conditions (Su et al., 2020 ). Consequently, the PTEs previously immobilized in Fe oxides can be released, operating as sources of contaminants for estuarine environments (Barcellos et al., 2022 ; Queiroz et al., 2021 ). A rapid and significant increase in Fe reduction, along with an increase in the bioavailable concentrations of Al, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn, has been reported in Fe mine tailings incubated under anoxic conditions (Barcellos et al., 2022 ). These lab-scale results align with field results that showed a decrease in 70% of the total Fe concentrations in estuarine soils impacted by mine tailings due to the establishment of more anoxic conditions, after two years of mine tailing deposition at the estuary (Queiroz et al., 2021 ). This raises particular concern regarding the elements whose total concentrations exceed the threshold values (Co, Cr, and Ni; Table 1 ), especially given their high affinity for Fe and Mn oxides (Agnieszka and Barbara, 2012 ; Wang et al., 2024 ; Woodard et al., 2007 ). The positive correlations between the total concentrations of PTEs (Cd, Cr, Cu, and Ni) and the Fe concentrations in the soil suggest that the presence of Fe controls the dynamics of PTEs (Fig. 3 ). Low sulfate input from seawater in this estuary (Ferreira et al., 2021 ; Queiroz et al., 2018 ), combined with an active redox environment, can lead to the dissolution of Fe oxides (Queiroz et al., 2022b ), also releasing the associated PTEs (Barcellos et al., 2022 ) and favoring their accumulation in both native (Ferreira et al., 2024b , 2022b , 2022a ) and cultivated species. 3.3 PTE accumulation in edible plants The PTE accumulation patterns varied between the plant species and plant compartments (Fig. 4 ). For Musa spp . (Fig. 4 A) and M. esculenta plants (Fig. 4 B), all PTEs (except Cr) tended to accumulate more in the underground compartments, such as roots and tubers, than in the aerial parts. On the other hand, T. cacao showed high PTE accumulation in the above-ground compartments (i.e., stems, leaves, and fruits; Fig. 4 C). Regarding PTE uptake, for Musa spp ., the order of PTE accumulation was Cu > Ni > Pb > Cd > Cr (Fig. 4 A). Notably, the concentrations of Cd and Pb in the fruits of Musa spp. (0.16 mg kg − 1 and 3.11 mg kg − 1 , respectively; Fig. 4 ) surpassed the threshold value established by FAO (Table S5). The order of PTE accumulation in M. esculenta was Cu > Pb > Ni > Cd > Cr (Fig. 4 B). Regarding the distribution of PTEs in M. esculenta , roots emerged as the primary compartment for the accumulation of PTEs, except for Cr, which exhibited higher accumulation in the tubers (Fig. 4 ). The concentrations of Cd (0.5 mg kg − 1 ; Fig. 4 ), Cr (3.0 mg kg − 1 ; Fig. 4 ), and Ni (2.2 mg kg − 1 ; Fig. 4 ) exceeded the threshold values (Table S5). The order of PTE accumulation in T. cacao was Cu > Ni > Pb > Cd (Fig. 4 C). Furthermore, the concentrations of Cu and Pb in the fruit pulp (31.7 mg kg − 1 and 3.1 mg kg − 1 , respectively; Fig. 4 ) exceeded the threshold values established by FAO (1995). The concentrations of other elements (e.g., Fe, Al, Mn, and Zn) in the plant compartments are presented in the supplementary file (Fig. S1 ). Edible crops tend to accumulate PTEs within their compartments, and the presence of non-essential elements in the environment can result in bioaccumulation by plants (Wang et al., 2022 ). PTEs have the ability to interact with roots, leading to their uptake in polluted soil and an increased risk of toxic effects on both plants and animals (Khan et al., 2015 ). Our findings demonstrated that large amounts of PTEs remained in the roots, except for T. cacao (Fig. 4 ), which accumulated more PTEs in its leaves and stems. While this may be advantageous for some plant species, such as Musa spp ., where the edible part is the aerial part, it raises concerns for tuberous plants such as M. esculenta (Fig. 4 ). The leaves of the cultivated plant species at the Rio Doce estuary also exhibited PTE concentrations (Fig. 4 ) that exceeded the expected levels for this plant part, considering a “standard plant” (i.e., Mn: 200 mg kg⁻¹; Zn: 50 mg kg⁻¹; Cu: 10 mg kg⁻¹; Ni: 1.5 mg kg⁻¹; Cr: 1.5 mg kg⁻¹; Pb: 1 mg kg⁻¹; Co: 0.2 mg kg⁻¹; Cd: 0.05 mg kg⁻¹; Markert, 1994; Dunn, 2007). The PTE mobility within plant compartments can vary widely among plants (Baldantoni et al., 2005 ). Food crops constitute a crucial part of our diet and may harbor various essential and PTEs (Waqas et al., 2015 ; Yang et al., 2011 ), depending on the characteristics of the growing media. In this sense, PTE accumulation in plants is strongly influenced by soil attributes such as soil pH, redox potential, and total metal concentrations (Albert et al., 2021 ; Naz et al., 2022 ; Yin et al., 2024 ). The PTE concentrations in the edible parts of the studied crops were similar to or higher than those recorded at other contaminated sites (Arévalo-Gardini et al., 2017 ; Enyoh et al., 2023 ; Mafulul et al., 2023 ). Our results showed that the fruits of Musa spp. cultivated in the Rio Doce estuary accumulated more Cd and Pb than those collected near an abandoned mine tailing dam in Nigeria (Mafulul et al., 2023 ). Similarly, the M. esculenta tuber collected at the Rio Doce estuary showed higher Cr and Cu concentrations than those of other cassava plants that grew in highly contaminated sites (Enyoh et al., 2023 ). In the case of T. cacao fruits, the Cu, Pb, and Ni concentrations were higher than the average concentrations of these PTEs in Peruvian cacao plantations (Arévalo-Gardini et al., 2017 ). Considering this, the high concentration of PTEs in the edible parts of the plants collected at the Rio Doce estuary raises concerns about possible human health threats. 3.4 Health risk assessment 3.4.1 Average daily intake The estimated ADI for both adults and children, focusing on the consumption of the edible parts of M. esculenta , Musa spp ., and T. cacao plants, varied among the PTEs (Table 2 ). In adults consuming M. esculenta , high ADI values were observed for Al (6.6 ± 1.4 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), Fe (4.7 ± 1.0 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), and Mn (1.5 ± 0.1 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ). For children, high levels were found for Al (15.4 ± 3.4 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), Fe (11.1 ± 2.3 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), and Mn (3.6 ± 0.2 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), with a relatively higher Ba ADI (1.3 ± 0.2 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ). The presence of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn slightly contributed to the overall elemental profile of M. esculenta intake (Table 2 ). The estimated ADI for Musa spp. indicated high levels of Mn (17.6 ± 7.8 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), Ba (4.6 ± 1.7 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), and Zn (1.7 ± 0.5 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ) for adults. Children exhibited high ADI values for Mn (83.6 ± 37.1 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), Ba (20.7 ± 8.0 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), Zn (8.1 ± 2.2 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), and Fe (2.2 ± 3.4 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ). Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, and Pb contributed marginally to the ADI of Musa spp. (Table 2 ). The results for T. cacao consumption also showed high ADI values. The highest ADI values for both adults and children were recorded for Mn (adults:1.8 ± 2.9; children: 2.5 ± 0.22 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), Ba (adults: 1.0 ± 0.8; children: 1.4 ± 0.8 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ), and Zn (adults: 1.0 ± 0.2; children: 1.38 ± 0.22 µg kg − 1 day − 1 ). In addition to the concentrations of some PTEs (such as Cd, Cr, Ni, and Pb) exceeding the thresholds for the edible parts of plants, the ADI values for both receptor groups remained below the tolerable daily intake established by (USEPA, 2024 ). Table 2 Average daily intake (ADI, in mg kg − 1 day − 1 ) for adults and children, focusing on the consumption of M. esculenta , Musa spp. , and T. cacao cultivated in mine tailing impacted soil. PTEs Adults Average Standard Deviation M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao Al 6.56E-03 0.00E + 00 3.57E-04 1.44E-03 0.00E + 00 5.93E-04 Ba 5.47E-04 4.35E-03 1.01E-03 8.11E-05 1.68E-03 8.45E-04 Cd 1.31E-05 7.65E-06 1.08E-06 1.81E-05 1.71E-05 2.41E-06 Co 0.00E + 00 2.58E-05 4.96E-06 0.00E + 00 2.68E-05 6.28E-06 Cr 8.00E-05 6.92E-06 0.00E + 00 1.49E-06 1.00E-05 0.00E + 00 Cu 1.78E-04 1.45E-04 5.52E-04 6.08E-05 1.30E-04 3.72E-04 Fe 4.70E-03 4.53E-04 5.78E-04 9.64E-04 7.21E-04 8.15E-04 Mn 1.52E-03 1.76E-02 1.84E-03 9.85E-05 7.82E-03 2.85E-03 Ni 5.85E-05 3.21E-05 1.53E-04 6.55E-05 4.62E-05 5.97E-05 Pb 0.00E + 00 1.47E-04 5.59E-05 0.00E + 00 2.84E-04 1.25E-04 Zn 3.71E-04 1.71E-03 1.01E-03 7.14E-05 4.60E-04 1.59E-04 PTEs Children Average Standard Deviation M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao Al 1.54E-02 0.00E + 00 4.88E-04 3.38E-03 0.00E + 00 8.10E-04 Ba 1.29E-03 2.07E-02 1.38E-03 1.91E-04 7.96E-03 1.15E-03 Cd 3.08E-05 3.63E-05 1.47E-06 4.26E-05 8.12E-05 3.30E-06 Co 0.00E + 00 1.23E-04 6.78E-06 0.00E + 00 1.27E-04 8.58E-06 Cr 1.88E-04 3.29E-05 0.00E + 00 3.50E-06 4.76E-05 0.00E + 00 Cu 4.20E-04 6.89E-04 7.54E-04 1.43E-04 6.18E-04 5.08E-04 Fe 1.11E-02 2.15E-03 7.90E-04 2.27E-03 3.43E-03 1.11E-03 Mn 3.57E-03 8.36E-02 2.51E-03 2.32E-04 3.71E-02 3.89E-03 Ni 1.38E-04 1.52E-04 2.09E-04 1.54E-04 2.19E-04 8.16E-05 Pb 0.00E + 00 6.98E-04 7.63E-05 0.00E + 00 1.35E-03 1.71E-04 Zn 8.72E-04 8.10E-03 1.38E-03 1.68E-04 2.18E-03 2.18E-04 3.4.2 Target hazard quotient and hazard index Based on the average THQs for adults, the highest THQs for M. esculenta were found for Cd (0.013 ± 0.018) and Mn (0.010 ± 0.001) in M. esculenta ; for Musa spp ., they were found for Pb (0.4 ± 0.8) and Mn (0.10 ± 0.06), while Pb (0.2 ± 0.4) and Co (0.02 ± 0.02) exhibited the highest THQs in T. cacao (Table 3 ). The highest THQ values of M. esculenta for children were found for Cd (0.03 ± 0.04) and Mn (0.03 ± 0.002); for Musa spp ., Pb (2.0 ± 3.8) and Mn (0.6 ± 0.3) had the highest THQs, while Pb (0.2 ± 0.5) and Co (0.02 ± 0.03) had the highest values in T. cacao (Table 3 ). Table 3 Target hazard quotient (THQ) for adults and children, focusing on the consumption of M. esculenta , Musa spp. , and T. cacao cultivated in mine tailing impacted soil. PTEs Adults Average Standard Deviation M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao Al 6.56E-03 0.00E + 00 3.57E-04 1.44E-03 0.00E + 00 5.93E-04 Ba 2.73E-03 2.18E-02 5.06E-03 4.05E-04 8.38E-03 4.22E-03 Cd 1.31E-02 7.65E-03 1.08E-03 1.81E-02 1.71E-02 2.41E-03 Co 0.00E + 00 8.60E-02 1.65E-02 0.00E + 00 8.92E-02 2.09E-02 Cr 5.34E-05 4.61E-06 0.00E + 00 9.92E-07 6.68E-06 0.00E + 00 Cu 4.46E-03 3.63E-03 1.38E-02 1.52E-03 3.25E-03 9.30E-03 Fe 6.72E-03 6.47E-04 8.26E-04 1.38E-03 1.03E-03 1.16E-03 Mn 1.08E-02 1.26E-01 1.31E-02 7.04E-04 5.58E-02 2.03E-02 Ni 2.93E-03 1.60E-03 7.64E-03 3.28E-03 2.31E-03 2.98E-03 Pb 0.00E + 00 4.20E-01 1.60E-01 0.00E + 00 8.11E-01 3.57E-01 Zn 1.24E-03 5.68E-03 3.37E-03 2.38E-04 1.53E-03 5.31E-04 THI 4.86E-02 6.73E-01 2.21E-01 2.46E-03 9.00E-02 3.81E-02 PTEs Children Average Standard Deviation M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao M. esculenta Musa spp. T. cacao Al 1.54E-02 0.00E + 00 4.88E-04 3.38E-03 0.00E + 00 8.10E-04 Ba 6.43E-03 1.03E-01 6.91E-03 9.54E-04 3.98E-02 5.77E-03 Cd 3.08E-02 3.63E-02 1.47E-03 4.26E-02 8.12E-02 3.30E-03 Co 0.00E + 00 4.08E-01 2.26E-02 0.00E + 00 4.24E-01 2.86E-02 Cr 1.26E-04 2.19E-05 0.00E + 00 2.34E-06 3.17E-05 0.00E + 00 Cu 1.05E-02 1.72E-02 1.89E-02 3.58E-03 1.54E-02 1.27E-02 Fe 1.58E-02 3.07E-03 1.13E-03 3.24E-03 4.89E-03 1.59E-03 Mn 2.55E-02 5.97E-01 1.80E-02 1.66E-03 2.65E-01 2.78E-02 Ni 6.89E-03 7.62E-03 1.04E-02 7.72E-03 1.10E-02 4.08E-03 Pb 0.00E + 00 1.99E + 00 2.18E-01 0.00E + 00 3.85E + 00 4.88E-01 Zn 2.91E-03 2.70E-02 4.61E-03 5.60E-04 7.28E-03 7.26E-04 THI 1.14E-01 3.19E + 00 3.03E-01 5.79E-03 4.27E-01 5.21E-02 THI values for most of the elements analyzed remained below 1 (Fig. 5 , Table 3 ), indicating that consumption of food cultivated in the Rio Doce estuary did not pose significant non-carcinogenic health risks associated with the PTE intake. The THI values for adults were 0.05 ± 0.02 for M. esculenta , 0.7 ± 0.7 for Musa spp. , and 0.2 ± 0.4 for T. cacao (Fig. 5 A). Although most values were below 1, indicating a low risk for adults, the THI for Musa spp. in children exceeded 1, suggesting potential health impacts. The main PTE contributing to the THI > 1 for children was Pb (1.99, Table 3 ). Long-term exposure to Pb in humans has been associated with significant mortality, contributing to 494,550 deaths and causing a loss of 9.3 million disability-adjusted life years (WHO, 2024 ). Each year, over 600,000 children worldwide suffer from mental retardation caused by elevated blood Pb levels (Keller et al., 2017 ; O’Connor et al., 2018 ; WHO - World Health Organization, 2022 ). Children's bodies metabolize lead differently than adults, leading to a higher retention and accumulation of Pb in their systems, which can result in more severe health effects (Rădulescu and Lundgren, 2019 ). Furthermore, a health risk assessment of Chinese consumers regarding Pb exposure through the diet highlighted the sensitivity of children, especially those aged 2–3 year old, to Pb exposure, emphasizing the necessity of continuing efforts to reduce exposure to Pb (Yu et al., 2017 ). The THI serves as a benchmark for assessing the health risks associated with exposure to PTEs from various sources (Kong et al., 2018 ). Although not providing a direct measure of risk, the THI provides a comparative value for estimating the likelihood of adverse health effects (MacDonell et al., 2018 ). The high THI for children underscores the necessity of incorporating age-specific considerations into human health risk assessments (Mohammadpour et al., 2022 ) and emphasize the significance of evaluating the complexity of exposure pathways. The health risks associated with PTEs depend not only on their concentration in specific media but also on the duration of exposure. Even at low concentrations (Fig. 3 ), long-term and chronic exposure to PTEs can pose health hazards, especially in vulnerable populations such as children (Mohammadpour et al., 2023 ). 4. Conclusions Our results showed elevated concentrations of PTEs, including Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb, in all crops analyzed in relation to the threshold values established by FAO. The association between PTEs and Fe oxides, which often reduce the availability of PTEs to plants, may not be an efficient mechanism in redox-active environments such as estuarine soils. The geochemical dynamics in a redox-active environment can serve as a source of PTEs, affecting the food chain and ultimately increasing the risks for children. These results are in contrast with those of previous studies, indicating that iron mine residues are inert and pose a low risk of environmental contamination and human health impacts. Our risk modeling further indicated a potential non-carcinogenic risk from the consumption of Musa spp . fruits grown at the Rio Doce estuary, with notably high risks for children (THQ > 1). Therefore, the results provide relevant information to support the recommendation for future research to focus on the bioaccessibility of PTEs in soil and crops. Such studies can offer insights into the bioavailability, transfer, and accumulation of PTEs in soil–plant systems, as well as their potential health consequences. In addition, the results emphasized the need for further studies incorporating in-vitro gastrointestinal bioaccessibility assessments to better understand the health risks associated with PTE exposure. Declarations Author Contribution ADF and HFC collected the samples, run the chemical analysis, wrote the main manuscript text, analyzed the data and prepared figures. AGFB collected the samples, analyzed the data and reviewed the manuscript. HMQ, XLO, TPS and AFB reviewed the manuscript. AFB and TOF advised students, reviewed the manuscript and managed the funding. Acknowledgments This work received financial support from Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP, grant numbers ADF: 19/14800–5; AGFB: 20/12823-5; HMQ: 21/00221-3; TOF: 23/01493-2; 22/12966-6; TPSC: 23/12124-8; and HFC: 24/08159-3); Fundação de Amparo do Espírito Santo (FAPES/CNPq/CAPES Rio Doce 77683544/2017); Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior CAPES—Finance Code 001 and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (grant numbers AFB: 301161/2017–8, and TOF: 305013/2022–0). HMQ was supported by USP Process n. 22.1.09345.01.2 (University of São Paulo, project number 10, Notice Program for Support to New Faculty Members 2024/1). XLO was supported by the Department of Education and University Planning of Galicia (GRC GI 1574) and the CRETUS Strategic Group (AGRUP2015/02). 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Health risk assessment of Chinese consumers to lead via diet. Human and Ecological Risk Assessment 23, 1928–1940. https://doi.org/10.1080/10807039.2017.1338934 Zanjani, S.Y., Eskandari, M.R., Kamali, K., Mohseni, M., 2017. The effect of probiotic bacteria (Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium lactis) on the accumulation of lead in rat brains. Environmental Science and Pollution Research 24, 1700–1705. https://doi.org/10.1007/S11356-016-7946-9/METRICS Zhang, Xiuying, Zhong, T., Liu, L., Zhang, Xiaomin, Cheng, M., Li, X., Jin, J., 2016. Chromium occurrences in arable soil and its influence on food production in China. Environ Earth Sci 75, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-015-5078-z Zhao, Y., Talha, M., 2021. Evaluation of food safety problems based on the fuzzy comprehensive analysis method. Food Science and Technology 42, e47321. https://doi.org/10.1590/FST.47321 Zheng, N., Liu, J., Wang, Q., Liang, Z., 2010. Health risk assessment of heavy metal exposure to street dust in the zinc smelting district, Northeast of China. Science of The Total Environment 408, 726–733. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.SCITOTENV.2009.10.075 Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6568816","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":453756025,"identity":"6ae263ca-b6d1-4c99-93b7-eb9744e87c76","order_by":0,"name":"Amanda Duim Ferreira","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade de São Paulo","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Amanda","middleName":"Duim","lastName":"Ferreira","suffix":""},{"id":453756026,"identity":"e925f3b0-7143-4d9e-9eb1-ece2e9fe4e09","order_by":1,"name":"Heloisa Farineli Corveloni","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade de São Paulo","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Heloisa","middleName":"Farineli","lastName":"Corveloni","suffix":""},{"id":453756027,"identity":"0957bf6b-37b3-4d96-8ab7-8f2b34775fbd","order_by":2,"name":"Alexys Friol Boim","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade de São Paulo","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Alexys","middleName":"Friol","lastName":"Boim","suffix":""},{"id":453756028,"identity":"5eb8188b-db17-44c0-a8ae-a4e29dd4e650","order_by":3,"name":"Hermano Melo Queiroz","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade de São Paulo","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Hermano","middleName":"Melo","lastName":"Queiroz","suffix":""},{"id":453756029,"identity":"4f707be2-845f-4001-bd96-ed9d69cf06cd","order_by":4,"name":"Tamires Patrícia de Souza","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade de São Paulo","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Tamires","middleName":"Patrícia","lastName":"de Souza","suffix":""},{"id":453756030,"identity":"7d82702d-63a6-4411-a486-4c9e23c1d3d0","order_by":5,"name":"Xosé L. Otero","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Santiago de Compostela","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Xosé","middleName":"L.","lastName":"Otero","suffix":""},{"id":453756031,"identity":"2fa47651-85fb-4c8b-a001-4f09049f724a","order_by":6,"name":"Ângelo Fraga Bernardino","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Ângelo","middleName":"Fraga","lastName":"Bernardino","suffix":""},{"id":453756032,"identity":"a906eaea-dd66-4e94-945f-b058a0b922e2","order_by":7,"name":"Tiago Osorio Ferreira","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAAyklEQVRIiWNgGAWjYFACxgcgkoeBgfkAiJFAUAMPA7MBVAtbAmlaQEwD4rTYszczPq7cYyNj3n7mm+TPHQx55g2EbOE5zGx45lkaj8yZ3G3SvGcYimUOENIikX9MsuHAYR4JBqAWxjaGxBmEHMYjkcz+s+HAfx4J/jfPJH8SqYWNseHAAR4JiRw2CV6itJw5zAx0WDJQyzNja94zEsUShLSwtzczfmw4YGcvwZ/88ObPHTZ5BLWgAsYGEjWAtJCqYxSMglEwCkYCAACSZzex6WKpbgAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade de São Paulo","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Tiago","middleName":"Osorio","lastName":"Ferreira","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-05-01 03:23:08","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6568816/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6568816/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-025-02770-9","type":"published","date":"2025-10-01T15:58:11+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":82374877,"identity":"ba973b69-8c99-4061-89be-94f924a46171","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-09 14:26:18","extension":"jpg","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":98004,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eSampled sites at the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary (A) and images from the plant species: \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e,\u003cem\u003e \u003c/em\u003eor banana (B); \u003cem\u003eManihot esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, or cassava (C); \u003cem\u003eTheobroma cacao\u003c/em\u003e, or cocoa (D). Coordinates in UTM. For the coordinates in decimal degrees please refer to Table S1 in the supplementary material.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"1.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6568816/v1/f67ef19f89985b2c9b03c807.jpg"},{"id":82374878,"identity":"8ef8b5c1-563b-481a-ba14-060b80d8e54f","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-09 14:26:18","extension":"jpg","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":28931,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eIron geochemical fractionation of soils cultivated with \u003cem\u003eMusa \u003c/em\u003espp., \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e,\u003cem\u003e \u003c/em\u003eand \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e in the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary. Fe-EX, Fe-CA, and Fe-PY accounted for less than 0.1% of the pseudo-total Fe concentrations and are not represented in the graph.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"2.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6568816/v1/b3d9f3626eb8514041c6c130.jpg"},{"id":82374881,"identity":"fa18852c-8437-415a-ac16-905218de2c29","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-09 14:26:18","extension":"jpg","order_by":3,"title":"Figure 3","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":70987,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eCorrelations between total concentration of Fe and potentially toxic elements in cultivated estuarine soils. P-values \u0026lt;0.05 indicate a statistically significant correlation between variables obtained by the Spearman test.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"3.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6568816/v1/53fe89e19b981cd7bd3ff718.jpg"},{"id":82377137,"identity":"0c24f35e-7f72-49eb-9141-6dae1012425a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-09 14:50:18","extension":"jpg","order_by":4,"title":"Figure 4","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":83058,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eConcentration of potentially toxic elements (mg kg\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e) in plant compartments of crops cultivated at the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary: (A) \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e; (B) \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e; (C) \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e. Limit of detection =1.5 µg kg\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e. The edible parts are presented in yellow.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"4.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6568816/v1/7b87a19b6d0b7070bf94febb.jpg"},{"id":82374882,"identity":"84591c47-6d08-4b35-b5fe-4debd72e9105","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-09 14:26:18","extension":"jpg","order_by":5,"title":"Figure 5","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":36850,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eHazard Index (HI) for adults (A) and children (B), focusing on the consumption of \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e cultivated in mine tailing impacted soil.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"5.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6568816/v1/7c58490f9b6bc58bb6d5c563.jpg"},{"id":92884483,"identity":"6053ebd7-1d73-4fac-bd6d-190408dcd75a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-10-06 16:13:19","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1712103,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6568816/v1/0b828f8e-51ca-4eab-8e71-bc264a56a1d2.pdf"},{"id":82378179,"identity":"5f4fdd49-ce0a-4602-9e3f-4154bb10a42d","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-09 14:58:18","extension":"docx","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":178127,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"SupplementaryMaterial.docx","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6568816/v1/9b4755ec78b2e96ee21daf0d.docx"},{"id":82375630,"identity":"537c66ea-f555-4f69-8553-75942754ff36","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-09 14:34:18","extension":"jpg","order_by":2,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":67570,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eGraphical abstract\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Graphicalabstract.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6568816/v1/332aff4f50cd631541c3660c.jpg"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"From tailings to tables: Risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in edible crops cultivated in mine tailing impacted soils","fulltext":[{"header":"Highlights","content":"\u003cp\u003eCd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb exceeded safe limits in edible crops from the Rio Doce estuary\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBanana consumption may pose non-carcinogenic health risks to children (THI\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIron oxides failed to limit PTE uptake by crops in redox-active estuarine soils\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePTEs levels in edible crops challenge claims of tailings\u0026rsquo; inertness\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBioaccessibility assessments are an urgent need in mine tailing-impacted soils\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrom tailings to tables: Risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in edible crops cultivated in mine tailing impacted soils\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"1. Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eGlobally, over 600\u0026nbsp;million people have experienced health problems due to unsafe food (WHO, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR70\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e), which has resulted in 420,000 deaths annually (Miller et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). In this sense, food security, recognized as an essential component of Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger), is one of the most important global challenges (Berry et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e). Food contamination by potentially toxic elements (PTEs) such as Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb represents one of the most important challenges in food safety (Zhao and Talha, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR80\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Food contamination by PTEs arises from food processing, packaging, and contaminated water and soil from effluents, pesticides, fertilizers, and wastes (Ahmed et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Angon et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWaste and mine tailings can significantly affect food security by degrading land, disrupting agricultural activities, and contaminating soil and water (Hou et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Wegenast and Beck, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR69\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). Mining activities discharge tailings containing hazardous trace elements such as manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), barium (Ba) and zinc (Zn). These contaminants can accumulate in soil and water, posing risks to crop quality and human health throughout the food chain(Aendo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Hou et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSince PTEs are non-biodegradable, they are biomagnified into body tissues, causing severe health risks, including gastric, neurological, hematological, renal, and cardiac disorders (Pelletier et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR52\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e); the disruption of the central nervous system; reproductive failure; and genotoxicity (Wu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR73\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e; Zheng et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR81\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). Children are more susceptible to PTE exposure and toxicity than adults because of their fast growth rates (Kurt-Karakus, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e; Pe\u0026ntilde;a-Fern\u0026aacute;ndez et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR53\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). The neurological effects of Pb in children have been highlighted as highly detrimental and irreversible (Zanjani et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR78\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Furthermore, exposure to high levels of Cr, Ni, and Cu can cause acute and chronic toxicity in humans by binding to proteins and enzymes, altering their activity, and causing damage (e.g., changes in immunologic function in the lungs, and imbalances in the bone remodeling process) (Mohmand et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR48\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn November 2015, the \u003cem\u003eFund\u0026atilde;o\u003c/em\u003e mine tailings dam in Minas Gerais state, Brazil, collapsed, discharging over 50\u0026nbsp;million m\u003csup\u003e3\u003c/sup\u003e of mine tailings contaminated with PTEs (Bernardino et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Gomes et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). Previous studies have reported that, owing to the characteristics of mine tailings (rich in iron oxides) and the course along the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e basin (over 600 km), a significant amount of PTEs has been deposited in the estuarine region (Barcellos et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Since 2015, various studies have documented that deposited tailings are acting as a source of PTEs in different compartments, such as water, fauna, flora, and soil (Bernardino et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Ferreira et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024b\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR23\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024a\u003c/span\u003e; Gabriel et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Consequently, there is a growing concern about the deposition of iron mine tailings in the estuarine region of the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e and globally, due to possible dam failures and the potential contamination of agroecosystems by PTEs associated with these materials (Duarte et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Gabriel et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Blood samples from individuals living in areas affected by mine tailings showed high levels of exposure to aluminum (Al), As, mercury (Hg), and Ni (Paulelli et al., 2023), indicating that further studies are required to evaluate the sources of this contamination. Water intake was identified as an important source of exposure to Al and Ni (Paulelli et al., 2023); however, there are no studies regarding contamination throughout food production and consumption.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eGiven this, we hypothesized that PTEs - released due to the reductive dissolution of iron oxides deposited in estuarine soil (Barcellos et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e)- would accumulate in edible plant species, posing a risk to human health. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated the total PTE concentrations in different edible parts of plants and soils from an estuary area. Additionally, we performed solid-phase geochemical fractionation to identify the soil fractions associated with Fe and other PTEs. Furthermore, we assessed the human health risks of consuming fruits and tubers cultivated in the affected area by determining the non-carcinogenic risk using the Hazard Quotient (HQ), Hazard Index (HI), and Total Hazard Index (THI).\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"2. Material and Methods","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.1 Study site characterization\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe study area was in the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary, in the municipality of Linhares, Esp\u0026iacute;rito Santo (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003eA). The climate of the region is categorized as Aw (humid and tropical climates (Alvares et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e)), with average temperatures above 18\u0026deg;C in the coldest month and average annual precipitation exceeding 1,500 mm. The river regime aligns with the rainfall pattern, experiencing peak flooding from December to March and particularly low water levels from August to September (Bernardino et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe region is characterized by subsistence farming, featuring the cultivation of crops such as bananas (\u003cem\u003eMusa\u003c/em\u003e spp., B), cassava (\u003cem\u003eManihot esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, C), and cocoa (\u003cem\u003eTheobroma cacao\u003c/em\u003e, D). These three crops are important staple foods in the region and constitute a considerable portion of the local population's diet. Cultivating \u003cem\u003eMusa spp., M. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eand T. cacao\u003c/em\u003e remains an essential part of the local economy, and it continues to provide food security for many people in the region.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe selection of these agricultural areas was based on their importance to the local population's food supply and their proximity to the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e floodplain, which has been affected by the \u0026ldquo;Mariana Disaster,\u0026rdquo; one of the largest dam failures in the world(Carmo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). The dam rupture and mine tailing deposition in the estuarine environment led to a marked increase in the concentrations of metals such as iron (Fe), Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn in the soils and sediments of the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary (Ferreira et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024b\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022b\u003c/span\u003e; Gabriel et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR56\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022b\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). These concentrations have exceeded the limits recommended by Brazilian legislation, indicating significant pollution (Gomes et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe reductive dissolution of iron oxyhydroxides, influenced by organic matter inputs by plants (Ferreira et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022b\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR56\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022b\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR54\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022a\u003c/span\u003e), has led to a significant increase in the bioavailability of Fe and other PTEs, such as Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn, indicating potential chronic contamination in the estuary (Barcellos et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). PTEs immobilization into sulfidic minerals (e.g. pyrite) plays a key role in estuarine soils (Machado et al., 2014; Otero et al., 2023). However, this process is limited in the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u0026rsquo;s\u003c/em\u003e estuarine soil due to low sulfate inputs (Ferreira et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e), which highlights the need for ongoing environmental monitoring and remediation efforts to mitigate the long-term effects on the ecosystems, local communities, and food security.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec4\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.2 Soil and plant sampling\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo characterize the studied area (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003eA) soil samples were collected in six replicates using a stainless-steel Dutch auger at 0\u0026ndash;20 cm depth. These samples were preserved by freezing (-20\u0026ordm;C) to maintain their integrity until subsequent chemical and physical analysis. Along with soil sampling, the roots, stems, leaves, and fruits of \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e. (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003eB), \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003eC), and \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003eD) were collected in six replicates. The plant material was carefully washed with deionized water. Edible parts (fruits and rhizomes) were peeled, and the fresh weight was measured. Then, all plant parts were dried in a forced air oven at 65\u0026ordm;C until constant weight and ground using a Willey\u0026reg; knife mill.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec5\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.3 PTE total concentrations in soil and plant compartments\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe total PTE concentrations were determined from soil and plant samples through microwave-assisted acid digestion, following the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) method 3052 (United States Environmental Protection Agency, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR62\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1996\u003c/span\u003e). Plant and soil acid digestion involved digesting 0.25 g of finely ground material in Teflon tubes. The process included the addition of concentrated nitric acid (HNO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e), hydrofluoric acid (HF), and hydrogen peroxide (H\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e) to the tubes. Subsequently, the tubes were sealed and subjected to digestion in a microwave oven, with the temperature reaching 180\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;5\u0026deg;C in 5 min and remaining at 180\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;5 \u0026ordm;C for 9.5 min. Following partial cooling, the HF in the resulting extract was neutralized by adding 5 ml of 3% boric acid (H\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003eBO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e). The extracts were filtered and transferred to a 100-mL volumetric flask, where the remaining volume was filled with Milli-Q water.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo guarantee the accuracy and quality of the analysis, each set of 18 samples underwent acid digestion along with an analytical blank and an internal standard. For plant extraction, a tropical forage (RM-Agro E1001a; \u003cem\u003eBrachiaria brizantha\u003c/em\u003e cv. Marandu - EMBRAPA; Nogueira et al., 2016) was used as an internal standard. For the soil samples, reference material NBS 1646a (estuarine sediment from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST, 2004) was used as an internal standard.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec6\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.4 Soil geochemical fractionation of iron (Fe) and PTEs\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003ePrior to the sequential extraction process, the amount of water in the soil samples was determined by drying a subsample at 105\u0026ordm;C, obtaining the moisture percentage based on the weight difference relative to the weight of the wet sample. Then, the sequential extraction was performed using bulk soil samples collected from all sites. For this, 2-g wet samples were weighed, and after each extraction step, the supernatant was centrifuged at 3,000 rpm for 15 min and filtered. The remaining soil was subsequently rinsed with 20 mL Milli-Q water. The mixture underwent centrifugation at 3,000 rpm for 15 min and was discarded. This procedure was carried out to minimize the potential interference of the pre-reagent in the subsequent extraction. Additionally, all the solutions were purged with N\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e for at least 1 h before use to avoid the oxidation of reduced Fe and other PTE forms. Following this method, six operationally distinct Fe fractions were identified (Ferreira et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e; Otero et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR51\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e):\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEX - \u003cem\u003eexchangeable and soluble Fe and PTEs\u003c/em\u003e: extracted with 30 mL of 1-mol L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e MgCl\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e (pH 7.0) shaken continuously for 30 min.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eCA - \u003cem\u003eacid-soluble Fe and PTEs\u003c/em\u003e (e.g., those associated with carbonates): extracted with 30 mL of 1-mol L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e NaOAc (pH 5.0) by shaking for 5 h.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFR - \u003cem\u003eeasily reducible Fe and PTEs\u003c/em\u003e (i.e., the first pool of short-range-ordered oxides to undergo reductive dissolution): extracted with 30 mL of 0.04-mol L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e hydroxylamine hydrochloride diluted in 25% acetic acid (vol/vol). Extraction involved shaking for 6 h at 30\u0026deg;C.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eLP - \u003cem\u003ereducible Fe and PTEs\u003c/em\u003e (i.e., the second pool of short-range-ordered oxides that undergo reductive dissolution): extracted with 30 mL of 0.04-mol L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e hydroxylamine hydrochloride diluted in 25% acetic acid (vol/vol). Extraction involved shaking for 6 h at 96\u0026deg;C.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eOX - \u003cem\u003eFe and PTEs associated with crystalline oxides\u003c/em\u003e: extracted with 20 mL of a solution containing 0.25-mol L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e sodium citrate and 0.11-mol L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e sodium bicarbonate, carefully adding 3 g of sodium dithionite. The extraction was carried out by shaking for 30 min at 75\u0026deg;C.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePY - \u003cem\u003eFe and PTEs associated with sulfides\u003c/em\u003e (e.g., pyrite): extracted with 10 mL of concentrated HNO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e, by shaking for 2 h at room temperature. Before this step, the residue from the F5 step was treated to eliminate PTEs associated with silicates and organic matter. The silicates were removed with 20 mL of 10-mol L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e HF and agitated for 16 h, followed by the addition of 3 g of H\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003eBO\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e and 8 h of agitation at room temperature. Organic matter removal was achieved with 15 mL of concentrated sulfuric acid (H\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eSO\u003csub\u003e4\u003c/sub\u003e), which was shaken for 2 h at room temperature.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec7\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5 Fe and PTE determination in analytical extracts\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Fe and PTE concentrations in the extracts of all matrices (plant compartments and soil extractions) were determined by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES, Thermo Fisher Scientific\u0026reg;, 1Cap6300 Duo model) following the 6010C protocol from USEPA (USEPA, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR63\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1997\u003c/span\u003e). To guarantee the reliability of the data, all determinations were performed in triplicate, and the calibration curve solutions were prepared with standard solutions for ICP OES (TraceCERT\u0026reg;).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec8\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.6 Quality assurance\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe average recoveries for the targeted elements in NBS 1646a ranged from 90 to 105%, and for RM-Agro E1001a, they ranged from 82 to 122%, demonstrating a consistent and accurate recovery range. Moreover, all replicates' relative standard deviations were consistently below 10%. The analytical blanks exhibited PTE concentrations below the quantification limit (which varied from 0.01 mg L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e to 0.1 mg L\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, depending on the element).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec9\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.78 Health risk assessment\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe health risks associated with PTEs in the edible plant compartments of \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e., \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e were assessed following USEPA (EPA, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e) guidelines, specifically for non-carcinogenic risk evaluation. Non-carcinogenic risk was determined using the HQ, which represents the ratio between the average daily intake (ADI, mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e) of a chemical substance and its corresponding reference dose (RfD; detailed in Table S2). Equations\u0026nbsp;1 and 2 were used for this purpose. Table S3 provides the parameters and values utilized for risk calculation (e.g., ingestion rate and body weight) in both children (\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;6 years) and adults (\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;18 years), according to USEPA and Environmental Company of the State of S\u0026atilde;o Paulo (CETESB, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). They were derived from the annual per-capita household food purchase data for each food group in the southeastern region of Brazil, as reported by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e \u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\(\\:ADI\\:=\\:\\frac{C\\times\\:IR\\:\\times\\:\\:ED\\times\\:EF}{BW\\:\\times\\:\\:ATnc\\:\\times\\:\\:CF\\:}\\:\\)\u003c/span\u003e \u003c/span\u003e Eq.\u0026nbsp;1\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e \u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\(\\:HQ\\:=\\:\\frac{ADI}{RfD}\\)\u003c/span\u003e \u003c/span\u003e Eq.\u0026nbsp;2\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ewhere ADI\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;average daily intake (mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003ebw\u003c/sub\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), C\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;exposure concentration of PTEs in plant compartments (mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003efw\u003c/sub\u003e), IR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;ingestion rate (kg\u003csub\u003efw\u003c/sub\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), CF\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;weight conversion factor from dry base to wet base cultures (-), ED\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;exposure duration (years), EF\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;exposure frequency (days year\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), BW\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;body weight (kg), and AT\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;averaging time\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;ED \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\(\\:\\times\\:\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e 365 d. RfD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;reference dose of PTEs for oral ingestion (mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003csub\u003ebw\u003c/sub\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe HI for individual fruits was calculated according to Mohammadpour et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR46\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Eq.\u0026nbsp;3). Then, a comprehensive assessment of the potential non-carcinogenic impacts associated with all PTEs (Al, Ba, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Fe, Pb, Mn, Ni, and Zn) was performed using the THI (Eq.\u0026nbsp;4)(Mohammadpour et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR46\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e). THI is a key metric for assessing the potential non-carcinogenic health risks associated with exposure to multiple contaminants (Alsafran et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). This integrated approach thoroughly examines individual fruits and the collective impact of various heavy metals, providing a comprehensive understanding of their potential non-carcinogenic effects.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e \u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\(\\:HI\\:=\\:{\\varSigma\\:{HQ}_{PTE,\\:by\\:fruit}}_{}\\)\u003c/span\u003e \u003c/span\u003e Eq.\u0026nbsp;3\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e \u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\(\\:THI\\:=\\:\\varSigma\\:HI=\\:{HI}_{cassava}+{HI}_{banana}+{HI}_{cocoa}\\)\u003c/span\u003e \u003c/span\u003e Eq.\u0026nbsp;4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec10\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.9 Statistical analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe data were subjected to a normality test (Shapiro\u0026ndash;Wilk) and were not normally distributed (p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05). Spearman\u0026rsquo;s correlation coefficients were calculated for all variables because there were no assumptions about the data distribution. The R software was used to produce graphs and perform statistical analyses (R Core Team, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR58\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"3. Results and Discussion","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec12\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.1 PTE total concentration in contaminated soils\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eIron (60.4\u0026plusmn;7.1 g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), Al (17.0\u0026plusmn;2.0 g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), and Mn (812.1\u0026plusmn;304.9 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e) had the highest mean total concentrations in the soils (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e). Regarding the total concentrations of PTEs, the concentrations of Ba, Co, Cr, and Ni exceeded the threshold for soils set by Brazilian legislation (CONAMA, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e). The average Ba concentration was 209.2\u0026plusmn;49.1 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, surpassing the established agriculture prevention threshold value of 150 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e (CONAMA, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e). The average Co concentration was 27.2\u0026plusmn;3.5 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, representing an 8% increase over the established prevention threshold value of 25 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e (CONAMA, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e). Chromium in the soils exhibited an average of 21% higher concentrations (94.4\u0026plusmn;13.3 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e; Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e) compared to the prevention threshold of 75 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e. The total Ni concentration was, on average, 34% higher, reaching 45.2\u0026plusmn;5.2 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, compared to the prevention threshold of 30 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e). On the other hand, the total concentrations of other PTEs, including As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn, fell within the acceptable limits outlined by Brazilian legislation.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe total concentrations of Ba, Cr, Co, and Ni in agricultural lands vary significantly across different regions, influenced by industrial activities and agricultural practices (Alexakis et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Badawy et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Li et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). In China, for instance, Cr concentrations in cultivated soils ranged from 1.5 to 820 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e (Li et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e), with an average concentration of 78.9 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, indicating significant contamination from human activities (Li et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Zhang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR79\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Similarly, the Cr concentration in soils surrounding chromate factories in Turkey was, on average, 80 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e (K\u0026ouml;leli and Halisdemir, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2005\u003c/span\u003e). The Co concentrations in this study were within the range of contaminated agricultural soils worldwide (Alexakis et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). The reported values vary widely, ranging from below 5 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e to over 30 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e (Alexakis et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). For instance, the soil of agricultural fields contaminated by a thermal power plant and cement factory in India showed total cobalt concentrations ranging from 9.7 to 19.3 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, values considered to be above typical soil concentrations (Sharma et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR60\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). Nickel levels in soil can also vary widely depending on the soil parent material and pollution sources (Badawy et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Hu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Significant yield reductions in vegetables such as cabbage and radish were recorded in cultivated soils in Ontario, due to the Ni concentration in soils reaching up to 6,455 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e (Frank et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1982\u003c/span\u003e). Given these examples, PTEs with concentrations exceeding the threshold for cultivated soils, as set by the CONAMA resolution (CONAMA, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e), pose remarkable risks, including soil degradation, compromised crop quality, and environmental contamination, with implications for both human health and ecosystem integrity (Hou et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTotal concentrations of potentially toxic elements in cultivated soils at \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"6\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eElements\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eUnit\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThreshold*\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e54.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e60.3\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;7.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e63.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;6.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAl\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16.8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17.8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\" morerows=\"8\" rowspan=\"9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003emg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e935.9\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;285.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e766.3\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;293.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e796.0\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;333.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBa\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e267.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;34.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e177.5\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;61.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e182.8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;51.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e150\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCd\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.9\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCo\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30.0\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e27.6\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCr\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e81.5\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;5.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e93.8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;14.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e101.5\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;10.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e75\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCu\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15.0\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;6.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16.0\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;5.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16.7\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e60\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNi\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e40.8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e44.56\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;5.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e48.1\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePb\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e70.5\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;12.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e70.8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;5.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e71.8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;7.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e100\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eZn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e85.9\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e86.6\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;11.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e96.0\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;9.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e300\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e*Threshold limits according to CONAMA (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.2 Fe geochemical fractionation in mine tailing impacted soils\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe geochemical fractionation of the solid phase revealed that iron predominantly formed associations with crystalline oxides (Fe-OX; Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e). The Fe-OX fraction accounted for 73.6% of the pseudo-total Fe concentration, followed by the Fe-FR fraction, constituting an average of 24% (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e), and the Fe-LP fraction (on average, 1.9% of the pseudo-total Fe concentration). The soluble and exchangeable Fe concentrations (i.e., Fe-EX), as well as Fe-CA and Fe-PY, represented less than 0.1% of the pseudo-total Fe concentrations.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSimilarly, the geochemical fractionation revealed that 87% of the pseudo-total concentration of PTEs were accounted in the Fe oxides fractions (i.e., FR, LP and OX, Table S4). These findings align with those of previous studies, such as those conducted in the soils of the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary, where elements such as Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb have been predominantly associated with Fe oxides, specifically in fractions FR, LP, and OX (Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIron oxides can act as a sink for PTEs owing to adsorption or coprecipitation, facilitating the immobilization of PTEs (Warren and Alloway, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR68\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2003\u003c/span\u003e). Some studies have indicated a decreased mobility of PTEs and decreased plant uptake due to the application of Fe grits in contaminated soils (Houben et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e; Kumpiene et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e; Yang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR74\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHowever, estuarine soils are subjected to a redox-active environment, where the dissolutive reduction of Fe oxides is microbial-mediated in the organic matter decomposition process, which acts as an electron donor under suboxic and anoxic conditions (Su et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR61\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). Consequently, the PTEs previously immobilized in Fe oxides can be released, operating as sources of contaminants for estuarine environments (Barcellos et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). A rapid and significant increase in Fe reduction, along with an increase in the bioavailable concentrations of Al, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn, has been reported in Fe mine tailings incubated under anoxic conditions (Barcellos et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e). These lab-scale results align with field results that showed a decrease in 70% of the total Fe concentrations in estuarine soils impacted by mine tailings due to the establishment of more anoxic conditions, after two years of mine tailing deposition at the estuary (Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). This raises particular concern regarding the elements whose total concentrations exceed the threshold values (Co, Cr, and Ni; Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e), especially given their high affinity for Fe and Mn oxides (Agnieszka and Barbara, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e; Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR65\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e; Woodard et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR72\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e). The positive correlations between the total concentrations of PTEs (Cd, Cr, Cu, and Ni) and the Fe concentrations in the soil suggest that the presence of Fe controls the dynamics of PTEs (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eLow sulfate input from seawater in this estuary (Ferreira et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e), combined with an active redox environment, can lead to the dissolution of Fe oxides (Queiroz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR56\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022b\u003c/span\u003e), also releasing the associated PTEs (Barcellos et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e) and favoring their accumulation in both native (Ferreira et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024b\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022b\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022a\u003c/span\u003e) and cultivated species.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec14\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3 PTE accumulation in edible plants\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe PTE accumulation patterns varied between the plant species and plant compartments (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e). For \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e. (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003eA) and \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e plants (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003eB), all PTEs (except Cr) tended to accumulate more in the underground compartments, such as roots and tubers, than in the aerial parts. On the other hand, \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e showed high PTE accumulation in the above-ground compartments (i.e., stems, leaves, and fruits; Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003eC).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eRegarding PTE uptake, for \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e., the order of PTE accumulation was Cu\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Ni\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Pb\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Cd\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Cr (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003eA). Notably, the concentrations of Cd and Pb in the fruits of \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e (0.16 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e and 3.11 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively; Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e) surpassed the threshold value established by FAO (Table S5).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe order of PTE accumulation in \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e was Cu\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Pb\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Ni\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Cd\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Cr (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003eB). Regarding the distribution of PTEs in \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, roots emerged as the primary compartment for the accumulation of PTEs, except for Cr, which exhibited higher accumulation in the tubers (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e). The concentrations of Cd (0.5 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e; Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e), Cr (3.0 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e; Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e), and Ni (2.2 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e; Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e) exceeded the threshold values (Table S5).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe order of PTE accumulation in \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e was Cu\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Ni\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Pb\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;Cd (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003eC). Furthermore, the concentrations of Cu and Pb in the fruit pulp (31.7 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e and 3.1 mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively; Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e) exceeded the threshold values established by FAO (1995). The concentrations of other elements (e.g., Fe, Al, Mn, and Zn) in the plant compartments are presented in the supplementary file (Fig. \u003cspan refid=\"MOESM1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003eS1\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEdible crops tend to accumulate PTEs within their compartments, and the presence of non-essential elements in the environment can result in bioaccumulation by plants (Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR66\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e). PTEs have the ability to interact with roots, leading to their uptake in polluted soil and an increased risk of toxic effects on both plants and animals (Khan et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e). Our findings demonstrated that large amounts of PTEs remained in the roots, except for \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e), which accumulated more PTEs in its leaves and stems. While this may be advantageous for some plant species, such as \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e., where the edible part is the aerial part, it raises concerns for tuberous plants such as \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe leaves of the cultivated plant species at the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary also exhibited PTE concentrations (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e) that exceeded the expected levels for this plant part, considering a \u0026ldquo;standard plant\u0026rdquo; (i.e., Mn: 200 mg kg⁻\u0026sup1;; Zn: 50 mg kg⁻\u0026sup1;; Cu: 10 mg kg⁻\u0026sup1;; Ni: 1.5 mg kg⁻\u0026sup1;; Cr: 1.5 mg kg⁻\u0026sup1;; Pb: 1 mg kg⁻\u0026sup1;; Co: 0.2 mg kg⁻\u0026sup1;; Cd: 0.05 mg kg⁻\u0026sup1;; Markert, 1994; Dunn, 2007).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe PTE mobility within plant compartments can vary widely among plants (Baldantoni et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2005\u003c/span\u003e). Food crops constitute a crucial part of our diet and may harbor various essential and PTEs (Waqas et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR67\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e; Yang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR75\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e), depending on the characteristics of the growing media. In this sense, PTE accumulation in plants is strongly influenced by soil attributes such as soil pH, redox potential, and total metal concentrations (Albert et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Naz et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR49\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Yin et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR76\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe PTE concentrations in the edible parts of the studied crops were similar to or higher than those recorded at other contaminated sites (Ar\u0026eacute;valo-Gardini et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e; Enyoh et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e; Mafulul et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). Our results showed that the fruits of \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e cultivated in the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary accumulated more Cd and Pb than those collected near an abandoned mine tailing dam in Nigeria (Mafulul et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). Similarly, the \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e tuber collected at the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary showed higher Cr and Cu concentrations than those of other cassava plants that grew in highly contaminated sites (Enyoh et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). In the case of \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e fruits, the Cu, Pb, and Ni concentrations were higher than the average concentrations of these PTEs in Peruvian cacao plantations (Ar\u0026eacute;valo-Gardini et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Considering this, the high concentration of PTEs in the edible parts of the plants collected at the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary raises concerns about possible human health threats.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec15\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.4 Health risk assessment\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.4.1 Average daily intake\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe estimated ADI for both adults and children, focusing on the consumption of the edible parts of \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e., and \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e plants, varied among the PTEs (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e). In adults consuming \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, high ADI values were observed for Al (6.6\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.4 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), Fe (4.7\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.0 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), and Mn (1.5\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.1 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e). For children, high levels were found for Al (15.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.4 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), Fe (11.1\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.3 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), and Mn (3.6\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.2 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), with a relatively higher Ba ADI (1.3\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.2 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e). The presence of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn slightly contributed to the overall elemental profile of \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e intake (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe estimated ADI for \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e indicated high levels of Mn (17.6\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;7.8 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), Ba (4.6\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.7 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), and Zn (1.7\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.5 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e) for adults. Children exhibited high ADI values for Mn (83.6\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;37.1 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), Ba (20.7\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;8.0 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), Zn (8.1\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.2 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), and Fe (2.2\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.4 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e). Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, and Pb contributed marginally to the ADI of \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe results for \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e consumption also showed high ADI values. The highest ADI values for both adults and children were recorded for Mn (adults:1.8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.9; children: 2.5\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.22 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), Ba (adults: 1.0\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.8; children: 1.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.8 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e), and Zn (adults: 1.0\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.2; children: 1.38\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.22 \u0026micro;g kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e). In addition to the concentrations of some PTEs (such as Cd, Cr, Ni, and Pb) exceeding the thresholds for the edible parts of plants, the ADI values for both receptor groups remained below the tolerable daily intake established by (USEPA, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAverage daily intake (ADI, in mg kg\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e day\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e) for adults and children, focusing on the consumption of \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e cultivated in mine tailing impacted soil.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePTEs\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"6\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAdults\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAverage\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStandard Deviation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAl\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.56E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.57E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.44E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.93E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBa\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.47E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.35E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.01E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.11E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.68E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.45E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCd\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.31E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.65E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.08E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.81E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.71E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.41E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCo\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.58E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.96E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.68E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.28E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCr\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.00E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.92E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.49E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.00E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCu\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.78E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.45E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.52E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.08E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.30E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.72E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.70E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.53E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.78E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.64E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.21E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.15E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.52E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.76E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.84E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.85E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.82E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.85E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNi\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.85E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.21E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.53E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.55E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.62E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.97E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePb\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.47E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.59E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.84E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.25E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eZn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.71E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.71E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.01E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.14E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.60E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.59E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePTEs\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"6\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eChildren\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAverage\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStandard Deviation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAl\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.54E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.88E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.38E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.10E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBa\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.29E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.07E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.38E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.91E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.96E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.15E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCd\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.08E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.63E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.47E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.26E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.12E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.30E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCo\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.23E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.78E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.27E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.58E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCr\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.88E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.29E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.50E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.76E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCu\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.20E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.89E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.54E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.43E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.18E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.08E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.11E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.15E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.90E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.27E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.43E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.11E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.57E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.36E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.51E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.32E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.71E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.89E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNi\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.38E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.52E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.09E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.54E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.19E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.16E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePb\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.98E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.63E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.35E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.71E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eZn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.72E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.10E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.38E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.68E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.18E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.18E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec17\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.4.2 Target hazard quotient and hazard index\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eBased on the average THQs for adults, the highest THQs for \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e were found for Cd (0.013\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.018) and Mn (0.010\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.001) in \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e; for \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e., they were found for Pb (0.4\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.8) and Mn (0.10\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.06), while Pb (0.2\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.4) and Co (0.02\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.02) exhibited the highest THQs in \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e). The highest THQ values of \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e for children were found for Cd (0.03\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.04) and Mn (0.03\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.002); for \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e., Pb (2.0\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.8) and Mn (0.6\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.3) had the highest THQs, while Pb (0.2\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.5) and Co (0.02\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.03) had the highest values in \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTarget hazard quotient (THQ) for adults and children, focusing on the consumption of \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e cultivated in mine tailing impacted soil.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePTEs\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"6\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAdults\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAverage\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStandard Deviation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAl\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.56E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.57E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.44E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.93E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBa\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.73E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.18E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.06E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.05E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.38E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.22E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCd\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.31E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.65E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.08E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.81E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.71E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.41E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCo\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.60E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.65E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.92E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.09E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCr\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.34E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.61E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.92E-07\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.68E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCu\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.46E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.63E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.38E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.52E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.25E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.30E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.72E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.47E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.26E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.38E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.03E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.16E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.08E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.26E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.31E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.04E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.58E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.03E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNi\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.93E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.60E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.64E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.28E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.31E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.98E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePb\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.20E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.60E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.11E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.57E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eZn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.24E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.68E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.37E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.38E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.53E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.31E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTHI\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.86E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.73E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.21E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.46E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.00E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.81E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePTEs\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"6\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eChildren\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAverage\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStandard Deviation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAl\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.54E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.88E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.38E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.10E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBa\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.43E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.03E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.91E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.54E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.98E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.77E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCd\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.08E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.63E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.47E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.26E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.12E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.30E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCo\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.08E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.26E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.24E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.86E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCr\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.26E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.19E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.34E-06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.17E-05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCu\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.05E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.72E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.89E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.58E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.54E-02\u003c/p\u003e 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\u003cp\u003e7.72E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.10E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.08E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePb\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.99E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.18E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.85E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.88E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eZn\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.91E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.70E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.61E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.60E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.28E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.26E-04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTHI\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.14E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.19E\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.03E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.79E-03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.27E-01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.21E-02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTHI values for most of the elements analyzed remained below 1 (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e, Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e), indicating that consumption of food cultivated in the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary did not pose significant non-carcinogenic health risks associated with the PTE intake. The THI values for adults were 0.05\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.02 for \u003cem\u003eM. esculenta\u003c/em\u003e, 0.7\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.7 for \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e, and 0.2\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.4 for \u003cem\u003eT. cacao\u003c/em\u003e (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003eA). Although most values were below 1, indicating a low risk for adults, the THI for \u003cem\u003eMusa spp.\u003c/em\u003e in children exceeded 1, suggesting potential health impacts.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe main PTE contributing to the THI\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;1 for children was Pb (1.99, Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e). Long-term exposure to Pb in humans has been associated with significant mortality, contributing to 494,550 deaths and causing a loss of 9.3\u0026nbsp;million disability-adjusted life years (WHO, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR70\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e). Each year, over 600,000 children worldwide suffer from mental retardation caused by elevated blood Pb levels (Keller et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e; O\u0026rsquo;Connor et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e; WHO - World Health Organization, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR71\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e). Children's bodies metabolize lead differently than adults, leading to a higher retention and accumulation of Pb in their systems, which can result in more severe health effects (Rădulescu and Lundgren, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR59\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). Furthermore, a health risk assessment of Chinese consumers regarding Pb exposure through the diet highlighted the sensitivity of children, especially those aged 2\u0026ndash;3 year old, to Pb exposure, emphasizing the necessity of continuing efforts to reduce exposure to Pb (Yu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR77\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe THI serves as a benchmark for assessing the health risks associated with exposure to PTEs from various sources (Kong et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR39\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). Although not providing a direct measure of risk, the THI provides a comparative value for estimating the likelihood of adverse health effects (MacDonell et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). The high THI for children underscores the necessity of incorporating age-specific considerations into human health risk assessments (Mohammadpour et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR46\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e) and emphasize the significance of evaluating the complexity of exposure pathways. The health risks associated with PTEs depend not only on their concentration in specific media but also on the duration of exposure. Even at low concentrations (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e), long-term and chronic exposure to PTEs can pose health hazards, especially in vulnerable populations such as children (Mohammadpour et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR47\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"4. Conclusions","content":"\u003cp\u003eOur results showed elevated concentrations of PTEs, including Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb, in all crops analyzed in relation to the threshold values established by FAO. The association between PTEs and Fe oxides, which often reduce the availability of PTEs to plants, may not be an efficient mechanism in redox-active environments such as estuarine soils. The geochemical dynamics in a redox-active environment can serve as a source of PTEs, affecting the food chain and ultimately increasing the risks for children. These results are in contrast with those of previous studies, indicating that iron mine residues are inert and pose a low risk of environmental contamination and human health impacts.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eOur risk modeling further indicated a potential non-carcinogenic risk from the consumption of \u003cem\u003eMusa spp\u003c/em\u003e. fruits grown at the \u003cem\u003eRio Doce\u003c/em\u003e estuary, with notably high risks for children (THQ\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;1). Therefore, the results provide relevant information to support the recommendation for future research to focus on the bioaccessibility of PTEs in soil and crops. Such studies can offer insights into the bioavailability, transfer, and accumulation of PTEs in soil\u0026ndash;plant systems, as well as their potential health consequences. In addition, the results emphasized the need for further studies incorporating in-vitro gastrointestinal bioaccessibility assessments to better understand the health risks associated with PTE exposure.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003ch2\u003eAuthor Contribution\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eADF and HFC collected the samples, run the chemical analysis, wrote the main manuscript text, analyzed the data and prepared figures. AGFB collected the samples, analyzed the data and reviewed the manuscript. HMQ, XLO, TPS and AFB reviewed the manuscript. AFB and TOF advised students, reviewed the manuscript and managed the funding.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAcknowledgments\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis work received financial support from Funda\u0026ccedil;\u0026atilde;o de Amparo \u0026agrave; Pesquisa do Estado de S\u0026atilde;o Paulo (FAPESP, grant numbers ADF: 19/14800\u0026ndash;5; AGFB: 20/12823-5; HMQ: 21/00221-3; TOF: 23/01493-2; 22/12966-6; TPSC: 23/12124-8; and HFC: 24/08159-3); Funda\u0026ccedil;\u0026atilde;o de Amparo do Esp\u0026iacute;rito Santo (FAPES/CNPq/CAPES Rio Doce 77683544/2017); Coordena\u0026ccedil;\u0026atilde;o de Aperfei\u0026ccedil;oamento de Pessoal de N\u0026iacute;vel Superior CAPES\u0026mdash;Finance Code 001 and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient\u0026iacute;fico e Tecnol\u0026oacute;gico (grant numbers AFB: 301161/2017\u0026ndash;8, and TOF: 305013/2022\u0026ndash;0). HMQ was supported by USP Process n. 22.1.09345.01.2 (University of S\u0026atilde;o Paulo, project number 10, Notice Program for Support to New Faculty Members 2024/1). XLO was supported by the Department of Education and University Planning of Galicia (GRC GI 1574) and the CRETUS Strategic Group (AGRUP2015/02).\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAendo, P., Netvichian, R., Thiendedsakul, P., Khaodhiar, S., Tulayakul, P., 2022. Carcinogenic Risk of Pb, Cd, Ni, and Cr and Critical Ecological Risk of Cd and Cu in Soil and Groundwater around the Municipal Solid Waste Open Dump in Central Thailand. J Environ Public Health 2022. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/3062215\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAgnieszka, J., Barbara, G., 2012. Chromium, nickel and vanadium mobility in soils derived from fluvioglacial sands. 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Science of The Total Environment 408, 726\u0026ndash;733. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.SCITOTENV.2009.10.075\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"environmental-geochemistry-and-health","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"egah","sideBox":"Learn more about [Environmental Geochemistry and Health](https://www.springer.com/journal/10653)","snPcode":"10653","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/10653/3","title":"Environmental Geochemistry and Health","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"metal pollution, acceptable daily intake, human health risk assessment, iron oxides","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6568816/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6568816/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"The deposition of mine tailings in agricultural ecosystems raises concerns about the risks to human health, particularly in areas where the dissolution of mineral phases can release potentially toxic elements (PTEs). Soils and crops cultivated in the Rio Doce estuary, which has been receiving iron-rich mine tailings since 2015, were collected in August 2021 to evaluate the total concentrations of PTEs in cultivated plant species (cocoa, cassava, and bananas) in the estuary. We estimated the risks of consuming these products by calculating the Hazard Quotient (HQ), Hazard Index (HI), and Total Hazard Index (THI). Our results showed that the Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb concentrations in the edible parts of the plants exceeded the threshold values in all the crops studied (cocoa beans, banana fruits, and cassava rhizomes). In addition, there was a possible non-carcinogenic risk associated with the consumption of banana fruits by children (THI \u003e1). For adults, there was no probable risk of consuming the products from the studied plants (HQ, HI, and THI \u003c1). In conclusion, the association between PTEs and Fe oxides, which often act to reduce PTEs' phytoavailability, was not an efficient mechanism in the areas studied. This inefficiency raises concerns regarding the risk associated with food production in such environments.","manuscriptTitle":"From tailings to tables: Risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in edible crops cultivated in mine tailing impacted soils","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-05-09 14:26:13","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6568816/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2025-06-09T04:12:55+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-06-09T01:30:40+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-06-06T14:56:44+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-05-20T10:40:46+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"85529541190639662337091735072514316159","date":"2025-05-10T03:01:29+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"167093981639065659864939908249352841668","date":"2025-05-08T11:06:51+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"2277219951999308444622637506802311127","date":"2025-05-07T08:31:13+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2025-05-06T06:36:12+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2025-05-05T12:39:23+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2025-05-05T10:14:36+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Environmental Geochemistry and Health","date":"2025-05-01T03:13:21+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"environmental-geochemistry-and-health","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"egah","sideBox":"Learn more about [Environmental Geochemistry and Health](https://www.springer.com/journal/10653)","snPcode":"10653","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/10653/3","title":"Environmental Geochemistry and Health","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"52637d95-02aa-4eb3-bc08-539864be869b","owner":[],"postedDate":"May 9th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-10-06T16:10:25+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-6568816","link":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-025-02770-9","journal":{"identity":"environmental-geochemistry-and-health","isVorOnly":false,"title":"Environmental Geochemistry and Health"},"publishedOn":"2025-10-01 15:58:11","publishedOnDateReadable":"October 1st, 2025"},"versionCreatedAt":"2025-05-09 14:26:13","video":"","vorDoi":"10.1007/s10653-025-02770-9","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-025-02770-9","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-6568816","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-6568816","identity":"rs-6568816","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}