Honeybees and their products as bioindicators for heavy metal pollution in Malta
Abstract
In this study, honeybees, propolis, air, soil and plant samples were gathered from two contrasting sites Ħal Luqa (industrial area) and L-Imġarr (agricultural area) in mainland Malta. Superficial heavy metals were extracted from the samples and tested using microwave plasma-atomic emission spectrometry in order to determine the concentrations of Ag, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Sn, Zn, Ni and Hg. The honeybee and propolis samples were digested using nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide and then ashed using a muffle furnace in order to prepare mineral solutions. Simultaneously the air samplers, soil and plant samples were washed using de-ionised water in order to extract the heavy metals settling on sample surfaces. Different methods of filtration were used in order to extract the metals from the surfaces of the samples. The most abundant metals in honeybees and propolis, and on plant and soil samples, were Sn and As (p<0.0001). In air samples0, the most abundant metal was Pb followed by Sn (p<0.05). These findings indicate that the honeybee and its propolis are good indicators for Sn and As contamination.
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References
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Finger, D., Kelte Filho, I., Torres, Y. R., & Quináia, S. P. (2014). Propolis as an indicator of environmental contamination by metals. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 92(3), 259-264.
Formicki, G., Gren, A., Stawarz, R., Zysk, B., & Gal, A. (2013). Metal Content in Honey, Propolis, Wax, and Bee Pollen and Implications for Metal Pollution Monitoring. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 22(1) 99-106.
Fowler, D., Skiba, U., Nemitz, E., Choubedar, F., Branford, D., Donovan, R., & Rowland, P. (2004). Measuring Aerosol and Heavy Metal Deposition on Urban Woodland and Grass Using Inventories of 210Pb and Metal Concentrations in Soil. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution: Focus, 4(2/3), 483-499. doi: 10.1023/b:wafo.0000028373.02470.ba
Gagné, F. (2012). A new research journal to understand the interactions of xenobiotics with living organisms. Journal of Xenobiotics, 2(1), 8. doi: 10.4081/xeno.2012.e8
Golomb, D., Ryan, D., Eby, N., Underhill, J., & Zemba, S. (1997). Atmospheric deposition of toxics onto Massachusetts Bay—I. Metals. Atmospheric Environment, 31(9), 1349-1359. doi: 10.1016/S1352-2310(96)00276-2
González-Martín, M., Escuredo, O., Revilla, I., Vivar-Quintana, A., Coello, M., Riocerezo, C., & Moncada, G. (2015). Determination of the Mineral Composition and Toxic Element Contents of Propolis by Near Infrared Spectroscopy. Sensors, 15(11), 27854-27868. doi: 10.3390/s151127854
Gutiérrez, M., Molero, R., Gaju, M., Van der Steen, J., Porrini, C., & Ruiz, J. (2015). Assessment of heavy metal pollution in Córdoba (Spain) by biomonitoring foraging honeybee. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 187(10). doi: 10.1007/s10661-015-4877-8
Handika, R. A., Purwaningrum, S. I., & Lestari, R. A. (2019). Analisis Risiko Non Karsinogenik Pajanan PM10 di Kawasan Komersial, Kota Jambi. Jurnal Serambi Engineering, 4(2). doi: 10.32672/jse.v4i2.1329
Kampouroglou, E., & Economou-Eliopoulos, M. (2013). Natural contamination by As and heavy metals in soil, their bio-accumulation and potential sources: the case of a travertine limestone quarry, Greece. Open Geosciences, 5(1). doi: 10.2478/s13533-012-0122-y
Krmar, M., Radnović, D., & Frontasyeva, M. V. (2012). Moss Biomonitoring Technique Used to Study Spatial and Temporal Atmospheric Deposition of Heavy Metals and Airborne Radionuclides in Serbia. Essays of Fundamental and Applied Environmental Topics/Ed. DT Mihailovic. Nova Publ. Inc, 159Ä192.
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Published
2020-01-20
How to Cite
BORG, Daniel; ATTARD, Everaldo.
Honeybees and their products as bioindicators for heavy metal pollution in Malta.
Acta Brasiliensis, [S.l.], v. 4, n. 1, p. 60-69, jan. 2020.
ISSN 2526-4338.
Available at: <http://revistas.ufcg.edu.br/actabra/index.php/actabra/article/view/282>. Date accessed: 18 nov. 2024.
doi: https://doi.org/10.22571/2526-4338282.
Section
Environmental Chemistry
