Health risk assessment of lake water contaminated with microcystins for fruit crop irrigation and farm animal drinking

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international 2023-07, Vol.30 (33), p.80234-80244
• Main Authors: Redouane, El Mahdi, Tazart, Zakaria, Lahrouni, Majida, Mugani, Richard, Elgadi, Sara, Zine, Hamza, Zerrifi, Soukaina El Amrani, Haida, Mohammed, Martins, José Carlos, Campos, Alexandre, Oufdou, Khalid, Vasconcelos, Vitor, Oudra, Brahim
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural Irrigation; Agricultural practices; Animals; Animals, Domestic; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Bioaccumulation; Child; Crops; Crops, Agricultural; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; Farms; Food chains; Food contamination; Fruit; Fruit crops; Fruits; Health risk assessment; Health risks; Horses; Humans; Lakes; Livestock; Microcystins; Microcystins - toxicity; Poultry; Raw water; Research Article; Risk Assessment; Risk levels; Toxins; Waste Water Technology; Water; Water Management; Water pollution; Water Pollution Control; Water use
• ISSN: 1614-7499; 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-27914-1

The health risks linked to the consumption of microcystin-accumulating crops have been increasing worldwide in toxic cyanobloom-occurring regions. The bioaccumulation of microcystins (MCs) in agricultural produce at environmentally realistic concentrations is poorly investigated. In this field study, we assessed the health risks of MCs in raw water used for irrigating fruit crops (bioaccumulation) and watering farm animals in the Lalla Takerkoust agricultural region (Marrakesh, Morocco). Thus, MCs were extracted from water and fruit samples and quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in order to calculate the health risk indicators. MCs posed a high health-risk level to poultry and horses, with estimated daily intakes (EDI) being 14- and 19-fold higher than the recommended limits (3.1 and 2.3 μg MC-LR L −1 ), respectively. Furthermore, pomegranate posed the same level of risk, with EDI being 22- and 53-fold higher than the limit dose (0.04 μg MC-LR kg −1 ) for adults and children, respectively. There was an urgent need for guidelines regarding water use and management in MC-polluted areas, besides the setup of nature-based tools for toxin removal from raw water used in farming practices. Moreover, MCs could contaminate the human food chain, which implies further investigations of their potential accumulation in livestock- and poultry-based food.