Determination of Copper, Zinc and Iron levels in Edible Muscle of Three Commercial Fish Species from Iranian Coastal Waters of the Caspian Sea

This study was undertaken to determine the concentrations of Copper (Cu) Zinc (Zn) and Iron (Fe) in edible muscle of 3 fish species, Mullet (Mugil auratus), Sefid (Rutilus frisii kutum) and Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio) collected from 4 fishing sites (Chaloos, Anzali, Roodsar and Fereidonkenar) of Iranian coastal waters of the Caspian Sea. The concentration of the metals was measured by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) and reported as mg kg(-1) dry weight of muscle. The mean concentrations of Cu in muscles of Mullet, Sefid and Common Carp were 3.14, 3.69 and 3.39 mg kg(-1), respectively. Zn levels in the same species were 43.46, 37.99 and 73.81 mg kg(-1) and for Fe values were 81.11, 73.59 and 94.78 mg kg(-1), respectively. Concentrations of Zn and Fe were significantly (p<0.05) affected by the species and sites and were significantly higher in Common Carp. The measured elements of the investigated fish were in permissible safety levels for human consumption.