Microplastic–metal nexus in soil and freshwater fish: distribution, bioavailability and risk assessment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53704/Keywords:
Estimated daily intake, Ecological risk, Estimated daily Microplastics, Toxic metalsAbstract
This paper examined the prevalence of microplastics (MPs) and toxic metals (TMs) in soils and freshwater fish in three urban centres, Osogbo, Ilesa and Ile-Ife, in southwestern Nigeria. Soil and fish were collected during the wet and dry seasons, extracted and characterised using density separation, oxidative digestion, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and optical microscopy. An inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES) was used to quantify metal content. Contamination models, estimated daily intake (EDI), hazard quotient (HQ) and lifetime cancer risk (LCR) were used to measure ecological and human health risks. The MP abundance in soil ranged from 1,200 to 5,733 particles/kg, and in fish from 1,045 to 130,556 particles/kg, with the wet season showing the highest values. The trend of MPs in fish organs from different rivers follows: GIT > liver > muscle > kidney > heart. Elevated levels of Fe, Al, Zn, and Cu were found in the metal analysis, along with toxic metals Pb, Cd, Cr, and Ni, with Cd posing the greatest ecological concern. The result also showed significant non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks associated with toxic metals, particularly Cr, Pb and Cd. The EDI of MPs in fish organs showed a significant seasonal variation, with exposure substantially higher during the dry season.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Abayomi A Oladejo, Prof. Luqmon A. Azeez, Dr. Adebanjo J. Anifowose, Dr. Rasheed O. Adetoro, Dr. Hassan K. Busari, Yusuf T. Ayinde, Saheed Basiru, Shakirat Muhammed-Lawal, Daud I. Azeez, Abdulrahman O. Makanjuola
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