Tissue distribution of heavy metals in Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) |
| |
| Institution: | 1. Department of Animal Sciences, Stellenbosch University, 7602 Stellenbosch, Private Bag X1, Matieland 7602, South Africa;2. Institute of Metabolic Physiology, Heinrich-Heine-Universität, D-40225 Düsseldorf, Germany;3. Branch: Fisheries Management, Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, 8012 Roggebaai, South Africa |
| |
| Abstract: | Tissue distributions of heavy metals were investigated in the Weddell seal collected around Syowa Station, Antarctica. Generally, the metal concentrations were high in liver and kidney and low in brain, blubber and skin. Fe in blood and spleen, Zn in bone, and Mn and Cd in pancreas and gastrointestinal organs were also relatively high. Wide variations of the metal concentrations in different bones were also observed. The concentrations of Fe and Cd were positively correlated with moisture content of the bones, while those of Mn and Zn increased with increase of Ca content in the bone. Majority of the metal burden in the body existed in muscle and liver. A relatively high burden of Cd was in the kidney. Based upon these results, the suitability of the tissues of a seal for ecological and toxicological comparisons is discussed. |
| |
| Keywords: | |
| 本文献已被 ScienceDirect 等数据库收录！ |
|
