Paiva Thaís de Castro, Pestana Inácio Abreu, Miranda Lorena Nascimento Leite, de Carvalho Gabriel Oliveira, Bastos Wanderley Rodrigues, Kasper Daniele
Laboratório de Limnologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Ecotoxicologia e Ecologia Aquática, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, MG, Brazil.
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Geociências (Geoquímica), Departamento de Geoquímica, Instituto de Química, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói 24020-141, RJ, Brazil.
Toxics. 2025 Jul 10;13(7):580. doi: 10.3390/toxics13070580.
The Amazon faces significant challenges related to mercury contamination, including naturally elevated concentrations and gold mining activities. Due to mercury's toxicity and the importance of fish as a protein source for local populations, assessing mercury levels in regional fish is crucial. However, there are gaps in knowledge regarding mercury concentrations in many areas of the Amazon basin. This study aims to synthesize the existing literature on mercury concentrations in fish and the exposure of urban and traditional social groups through fish consumption. A systematic review (1990-2022) was conducted for six fish genera ( spp., spp. and spp., spp., spp., and spp.) in the Web of Science (Clarivate Analytics) and Scopus (Elsevier) databases. The database consisted of a total of 46 studies and 455 reports. The distribution of studies in the region was not homogeneous. The most studied regions were the Madeira River sub-basin, while the Paru-Jari basin had no studies. Risk deterministic and probabilistic assessments based on Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA, 2007) guidelines showed high risk exposure, especially for traditional communities. Carnivorous fish from lakes and hydroelectric reservoirs, as well as fish from black-water ecosystems, exhibited higher mercury concentrations. In the Amazon region, even if mercury levels in fish muscle do not exceed regulatory limits, the high fish consumption can still elevate health risks for local populations. Monitoring mercury levels across a broader range of fish species, including both carnivorous and non-carnivorous species, especially in communities heavily reliant on fish for their diet, will enable a more accurate risk assessment and provide an opportunity to recommend fish species with lower mercury exposure risk for human consumption. The present study emphasizes the need to protect regions that already exhibit higher levels of mercury-such as lakes, hydroelectric reservoirs, and black-water ecosystems-to ensure food safety and safeguard public health.
亚马逊地区面临与汞污染相关的重大挑战，包括自然浓度升高和金矿开采活动。由于汞的毒性以及鱼类作为当地居民蛋白质来源的重要性，评估该地区鱼类中的汞含量至关重要。然而，亚马逊河流域许多地区在汞浓度方面存在知识空白。本研究旨在综合现有关于鱼类汞浓度以及城市和传统社会群体通过食用鱼类所受暴露的文献。在科学网（科睿唯安分析公司）和Scopus（爱思唯尔）数据库中，对六个鱼类属（ 属、 属、 属、 属、 属和 属）进行了系统综述（1990 - 2022年）。该数据库总共包含46项研究和455份报告。该地区研究分布并不均匀。研究最多的地区是马德拉河次流域，而帕鲁 - 雅里河流域则没有相关研究。根据联合国粮食及农业组织/世界卫生组织食品添加剂联合专家委员会（JECFA，2007年）指南进行的风险确定性和概率性评估显示，尤其是传统社区面临高风险暴露。来自湖泊和水电站水库的肉食性鱼类以及来自黑水生态系统的鱼类汞浓度较高。在亚马逊地区，即使鱼类肌肉中的汞含量未超过监管限值，高鱼类消费量仍会增加当地居民的健康风险。监测更广泛鱼类物种的汞含量，包括肉食性和非肉食性物种，特别是在严重依赖鱼类作为食物的社区，将有助于进行更准确的风险评估，并提供机会推荐汞暴露风险较低的鱼类供人类食用。本研究强调需要保护已经呈现较高汞含量水平的地区，如湖泊、水电站水库和黑水生态系统，以确保食品安全和保障公众健康。
