Chemical composition of wild and domestic animals’ organism in areas of geophagy distribution in Altai Republic

Abstract

Relevance. The need to study the elemental composition of the organism of wild and domestic animals in natural environments with different levels of chemical elements. Aim. To reveal features of the elemental composition of the organism of the Altai red deer (Cervus elaphus sibiricus Severtzov, 1873), wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa Linnaeus, 1758) and domestic pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus Erxleben, 1777) in Ongudai district, Altai Republic, including the area with signs of active geophagy. Objects. Organs and tissues of wild and domestic animals. Methods. Mass spectrometry with inductively coupled plasma; atomic-emission spectrometry; ion chromatography, analytical electron microscope with energy dispersion spectrometer. Results. The median values of chemical elements concentrations in the organisms of the Altai red deer, the wild boar and the domestic pig have been determined. S, Cl and K showed the highest values in the composition of macroelements and La, Ce, Nd and Th among rare-earth and radioactive elements. Among the elemental composition features of the studied animals, an increased accumulation of Hg and Pb in the Altai red deer; metals of the Fe-group, W, as well as rare-earth and radioactive elements – in the boar; platinoids – in the domestic pig. In comparison with the results of previous studies, increased concentrations of Hg in red deer kidneys, W in boar bronchi and Pb in the brain of domestic pigs were recorded. Assumptions were made about the factors influencing the formation of the elemental composition of the body of animals. For red deer and wild boar these are the factors of nutrition (including geophagy) and features of accumulation of elements in bone tissue; for domestic pigs – features of forage and local metallogeny, including composition of natural waters.