Butyltin compounds in sediment and biota from the lagoon of Bizerte (northern Tunisia): Potential risk for consumers?

ABSTRACTLevels of butyltins (BTs) were monitored in sediment samples and in seven fish species ( Boops boops, Diplodus sargus, Sarpa salpa, Serranusscriba, Spicara smaris, Trachurusdraco, and Trachinusmediterraneus), five bivalve species ( Cerastoderma glaucum, Chlamysflexuosa, Mytilusgalloprovincialis, Pinna nobilis, and Ruditapes decussatus), two gastropod species ( Bolinus brandarisand Hexaplex trunculus), cuttlefish( Sepia officinalis), and shrimp ( Penaeus notialis), most of which are commonly consumed in Tunisia. Samples were collected from Bizerte lagoon during March 2012. Average concentrations of total BTs found in sediment and the muscle of fishes, bivalves, gastropods, cuttlefish, and shrimp were 17.7, 11.5, 31.8, 36.9, 8.1, and 9.4 ng Sn g−1 dw, respectively. The calculation of tolerable average residue levels and non-cancer hazard quotientfor tributyltin(TBT) showed that daily exposure of these seafood to TBT is unlikely to cause any deleterious effects to humans, thus indicating that con...