engleski

Levels of polychlorinated biphenyls and chlorinated insecticides in the liver and muscle tissues of the European chub (Leuciscus cephalus) from the Sava River (Croatia)

The Sava River (945 km) is the biggest tributary to the Danube River. The 95551 km2 large catchment is extended over Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro. Although the methodological bases for data collection have been reasonably unified, data on the ecological character of the river basin, inventory of pollution sources, dangerous substances, socio-economic parameters, cost and benefit implications are still lacking due to the insufficient financing and the recent warfare. Aquatic organisms can be used as biological indicators to monitor contamination of aquatic ecosystems with persistent organic contaminants (POPs) such as organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Because of their strong lipophilic properties and their corresponding low solubility in water, it is much easier to determine POPs in the lipid fractions of aquatic organisms. The potential of fish as biomonitors was demonstrated by several monitoring studies.1, 2, 3, 4 It has to be stressed out that relatively small number of the papers report about the exposure of the chubs to chlorinated hydrocarbons in the European rivers. This short paper is among the first reporting about the systematic tracking of these pollutants in European chub in the rivers of the Balkan area.

PCB; DDT; Croatia; Sava river; European chub; fish; liver; muscle

nije evidentirano