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Toxic (Pb, Cd, Hg) and essential (Fe, Cu, Zn, Mn) metal content of liver tissue of some domestic and bush animals in Ghana

Accumulation of toxic metals in liver, a rich natural source of essential elements, can present health risks to regular consumers of liver. A total of 35 fresh liver samples of cow, sheep, goat, pig, grass-cutter (Thryonomys swinderianus), gaint rat (Cricetomys gambianus), red deer (Cervus elaphus), chicken and antelope (Antilocapra americana) were obtained from three different markets in Accra and Kumasi, Ghana. Samples were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrometry and an automatic mercury analyzer. Levels of iron in the grass-cutter and pig of 500.5–645.4 mg kg−1 were the highest in the animal livers examined. Mn concentrations were highest in grass-cutter and rat liver, ranging 16.5–30.2 mg kg−1. The safe Cu and Zn permissible limits of 20 and 50 mg kg−1 were exceeded in 70 and 75% of the liver samples, respectively. Generally, for each animal group studied, at least 50% of the sample livers exceeded the Cd permissible limit of 0.5 mg kg−1. The levels of Pb, which ranged 1.3–13.8 mg kg−1, exceeded the proposed European Commission (EC) limit of 0.5 mg kg−1. Care must be taken by regular consumers of the iron-rich animal livers of grass-cutter, pig and rat because they also had the highest levels of Pb (in grass-cutter and pig) and Cd (in grass-cutter, rat and pig). The liver samples analyzed for Hg had values far below the permissible limit of 0.5 mg kg−1.