Analysis of pathology in the gills of Abu mullet (Liza abu) affected by Musa creek water contamination

Marine pollution is one of the main concerns of countries surrounding the Persian Gulf which receives a great deal of contaminations such as petroleum chemicals and heavy metals daily. In this regard, histological changes in gill were used as a biomarker to evaluate the health of the marine fish species Liza abu, collected from different sampling sites in Mussa creeks. In the present study, 50 L. abuwere collected from different sampling sites in Mussa creeks including: 1. Petrochemical, 2. Gaafari, 3. Magidieh, 4. Ghazaleh and 5. Zangi. The gills of fish were fixed in Bouin‘s solution for 12 h. Five-micrometer thick sections were obtained and were stained in hematoxylin/eosin for examination in light microscopy. Pathological changes in the gill of Liza abu species including hypertrophy and hyperplasia of the lamellar cells, oedema, lamellar fusion, increase of mucus and chloride cells. Histopathological alteration index was determined on the basis of frequency of pathological changes in gill species Liza abu. The most amount of HAI for gill were observed at the Petrochemical station (p