Pollution Research Paper

NILE TILAPIA (OREOCHROMIS NILOTICUS) AS BIOINDICATORS IN RIVER NILE POLLUTION ASSESSMENT AT ASWAN GOVERNMENT, EGYPT

S.M. ALI, A.D. EL-GAMAL, H.A. ABO EL-MAGD AND A. FOUDA

Abstract

In this work, we aimed to evaluate the pollution impact of wastewater effluent on aquatic environment using certain bacteriological, biochemical, hematological and immunological parameters of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Fish and water samples were collected from Lake Nasser (as control or unaffected region) and both of El-Sail drain and Edfu sugar cane factory drain (as affected regions), Aswan governorate, south of Egypt. Significantly, El-Sail drain region recorded the highest values for physicochemical parameters which reflect the high load of organic matter, followed by Edfu sugar factory drain region and the lowest values were recorded in Lake Nasser region. As well as microbial load in selected organs of collected Nile tilapia showed significant variation between regions, and the highly microbial load recorded in the highly polluted region (El-Sail drain). In addition, E. coli and coliforms were detected at selected organs of Nile tilapia collected from El-Sail drain region. Also, the high levels of biochemical parameters in the serum of Nile tilapia were recorded at contaminated sites and increased with the elevation of the physicochemical parameters levels. Almost all the detected hematological and immunological parameters were significantly low in the blood of Nile tilapia collected from contaminated sites compared to Lake Nasser site. In general, nearly all the selected immunological and hematological parameters showed significant negative correlation with water physicochemical parameters.