Sea cucumbers are fished worldwide for export to Asia, but few studies have evaluated metal pollution and risk assessment. This study assessed concentration of trace metals and the potential ecological risk in sea cucumber (Holothuria floridana) and sediments at the Cispatá Bay, in the Caribbean Coast of Colombia. The trace metal concentrations in biota and sediments showed a similar decreasing trend as follows: Cu > Zn > Hg > Pb > Cd. The highest bioconcentration factor was found for Hg, and according to the sediment quality guidelines, Cu levels indicate adverse biological effects in the ecosystem. In this regard, Cu levels were higher than effects range low and the threshold effect levels (TEL) and lowest effect level in all the stations, whereas Hg levels were higher than TEL in most of them. Results for health risk assessment based on the maximum allowable daily consumption rate (CR_lim) suggest that there is no risk to adults; however, children should limit or avoid its consumption. Results from multivariate statistical analysis suggest that agricultural activities (i.e., application of fertilizers and agrochemicals) were identified as the main anthropogenic sources of metal pollution. This research suggest that sea cucumber could be used as a bioindicator species in studies of monitoring metal contamination, with special attention to the highly significant correlation between Zn in tissue and sediments. This study also reveals that anthropic activities may have negative effects in the quality of the sediments of the bay and contributing to the knowledge of metal accumulation in sea cucumber.

Graphical abstract

全世界都有捕捞海参出口到亚洲，但很少有研究评估金属污染和风险评估。这项研究评估了海参（Holothuria floridana）中痕量金属的浓度和潜在的生态风险）和哥伦比亚加勒比海岸Cispatá湾的沉积物。生物群和沉积物中的痕量金属浓度显示出相似的下降趋势，如下所示：Cu> Zn> Hg> Pb> Cd。汞的生物富集系数最高，并且根据沉积物质量指南，铜含量表明了生态系统中的不利生物影响。在这方面，铜的含量高于所有范围的低效应范围和阈值效应水平（TEL）和最低效应水平，而大多数情况下汞含量高于TEL。基于最大每日允许摄入量（CR _lim）的健康风险评估结果）建议对成年人没有危险；但是，儿童应限制或避免食用。多元统计分析的结果表明，农业活动（即肥料和农用化学品的使用）被确定为金属污染的主要人为来源。这项研究表明，海参可以用作监测金属污染的生物指示剂，尤其要注意组织中锌与沉积物之间的高度相关性。这项研究还表明，人类活动可能会对海湾沉积物的质量产生负面影响，并有助于了解海参中的金属积累情况。

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