Concentration of Mercury in the Livers of Small Terrestrial Rodents from Rural Areas in Poland

Small terrestrial mammals could be used as accumulative biomonitors of different environmental contaminants, but the knowledge of the level of Hg in their bodies is scant. The aim of our research was to verify the factors influencing Hg bioaccumulation and to analyze the concentration of total mercu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Molecules
Main Authors: Maciej Durkalec, Agnieszka Nawrocka, Jacek Żmudzki, Aleksandra Filipek, Marcin Niemcewicz, Andrzej Posyniak
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute 2019
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules24224108
Description
Summary:Small terrestrial mammals could be used as accumulative biomonitors of different environmental contaminants, but the knowledge of the level of Hg in their bodies is scant. The aim of our research was to verify the factors influencing Hg bioaccumulation and to analyze the concentration of total mercury (Hg) in the livers of four species of wild terrestrial rodents from different rural areas of Poland: the yellow-necked mouse (Apodemus flavicollis), striped field mouse (Apodemus agrarius), common vole (Microtus arvalis), and bank vole (Myodes glareolus). The concentration of total Hg was analyzed in liver tissue by atomic absorption spectrometry using a direct mercury analyzer. The concentration of Hg found in the livers of rodents ranged from <1 to 36.4 µg/kg of wet weight, differed between study sites, species, and sexes, and was related to body weight. We addressed feeding habits as potential causes of differences in liver Hg concentration among species.