Troubled Waters: Mercury Poisoning in Aquatic Animals and Seabirds

Dear Colleagues,

Marine pollution is one of the most serious problems of our planet today, and it causes serious risks to many aquatic organisms. Among the wide variety of pollutants, great attention has been paid to mercury; this toxic metal undergoes a series of chemical transformations when released into the environment. Mercury is transformed into various organic forms in aquatic ecosystems, making it more bioavailable and accumulative throughout the marine trophic web, with higher concentrations in top predators.

Fish belonging to highly polluted aquatic ecosystems can have more than 10 mg/kg of mercury, and the intake of alkylmercury can reach high risk levels, as happened in Minamata in Japan in the mid-1950s.

Fish have been widely documented as useful indicators of environmental pollution. Analysis of the bioaccumulation of Hg in the biotic components of ecosystems and the modifications of physical and biological parameters represent an important and useful tool for understanding the persistence, movement, and allocation of this toxic metal. In contrast to fish, much remains to be understood about the presence of mercury in seabirds and its possible effects on these organisms. This Special Issue aims to evaluate the bioaccumulation of Hg in marine fish and seabirds, paying attention to any differences in the levels of tissue deposition of Hg, thus increasing the current knowledge on the organs most involved in the accumulation of mercury.

This Special Issue welcomes epidemiological studies on the presence and accumulation of Hg in wild and farmed fish in order to give a comprehensible comparison between reared and wild fish. It also welcomes studies on innovative methods for the detection of mercury in fish and seabird organs.

Potential topics include:

1. Physiological responses to mercury in fish and seabirds.
2. Mercury in aquatic environments and oxidative stress in teleost.
3. The toxicological effects of mercury on marine fish and seabirds.
4. Epidemiological studies on the presence of mercury in fish and seabirds. 

Dr. Vincenzo Ferrantelli
Dr. Licia Pantano
Dr. Gaetano Cammilleri
Guest Editors

Francesco Giuseppe Galluzzo
Guest Editor Assistant

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• aquatic environment
• fish
• seabirds
• mercury
• oxidative stress
• pollution
• xenobiotics