Determination of cadmium, nickel, lead and vanadium concentrations in white Indian prawn sold in Shiraz town

A study about all kinds of pollutions, especially water and other aquacultures is necessary with the spread of contaminants in the environment and the human relationship to the environment for supplying food and other needs. The aim of this study was to determine concentration of heavy metals, Cadmium (Cd), Nickel (Ni), Lead (Pb) and Vanadium (V), in muscle tissues and skin of edible Indian prawn (Fenneropenaeus indicus) sold in Shiraz city. In this cross-sectional study, 120 Indian prawns were collected by referring to the main aquatic supply market in Shiraz in the fall of 2011. The preparation and analysis of samples conducted in accordance with the recommended instructions and the amount of heavy metals detected with atomic publishing (ICP) set in Varian V10-ES model and compared with the recommended values of global standards WHO and FAO. Data were analyzed using independent t-test. The concentration means of Cd, Ni, Pb and V in the studied samples of the muscles and tissues were 1.08±0.45, 8.62±1.25, 1.63±2.1, and 0.61±0.93 mg/kg and in the skins were 1.28±0.38, 7.61±1.53, 7.15±4.6, 1.4±0.45 mg/kg, respectively. The results of the analyzed data with t-test showed that the rate of Cd, Pb and V in the skin of sample was more than muscles, while Ni in the muscle was more than in skin (P<0.05). In this study, concentration levels of metals of Cd, Pb and V in the skin, and Ni in tissues of shrimp were above compared to each other (P<0.05). Based on these results, edible Indian prawns in Shiraz city were infected with high concentrations of Cd, Ni, Pd and V compared with Standards of WHO/FAO (P<0.05). So, consumption of these species should be cautious.