Bioaccumulation of Trace Metals and Genotoxicity Responses in Liza aurata as an Indicator of Industrial Pollution

Abstract Heavy metal contamination in the coastal and marine ecosystems is becoming a progressively serious risk to aquatic organisms and humans. This study reports the genetic damage and the accumulations of trace metals of L. aurata as a bioindicator species in the Payas coast of Iskenderun Bay, North-Eastern Mediterranean by COMET Assay. Fish were seasonally collected from a sampling site and a reference site for one year. Physicochemical parameters in water and trace metals in the tissues of fish collected from these sites were determined by electrochemical techniques. The high DNA damage frequency at the L. aurata was observed in the Payas coast of Iskenderun bay compared to the reference site because of pollutants that the detected high levels of Cd, Pb, Fe and Cu accumulation in L. aurata were exceed the maximum levels allowed by the national and international limit values. A significant positive correlation between Cd, Pb, Hg, Cr, Fe, Zn and Cu accumulations and DNA damage parameters was reported in the present study. Besides, we reported firstly, that it can be used successfully the electrochemical technique in the determination of trace metal concentrations in mullet. Consequently, obtained data indicate that L. aurata constitutes a useful tool as a sentinel organism for biomonitoring of the coastal ecosystem.