Bioaccumulation of 137Cs, Zn and Cr[VI] in the Green Mussel Perna viridis: Influence of Salinity and Temperature

Bioaccumulation of one radionuclide (137Cs) and two metal radiotracers (65Zn and 51Cr[VI]) was studied under controlled laboratory conditions in the green mussel Perna viridis in order to assess their usefulness as sentinel species for possible radioactive contamination originating from the nuclear facilities situated along the Karachi coast, Pakistan and the nearby Mumbai coast, India. The influence of two important external environmental factors (salinity and temperature) was also assessed. Three different temperatures (23, 28 and 32°C) and three salinity levels (25, 30 and 35 p.s.u.), which represent the range of temperature and salinity in marine coastal waters of Karachi, were selected. The results showed that both temperature and salinity affect bioaccumulation in P. viridis. Higher bioconcentration factors and uptake rates were found with the increase in temperature but they decreased with the increase in salinity levels. This indicates that the temperature and the salinity are key parameters to be...