Ecotoxicological Studies of Metal Pollution in Sea Turtles of Latin America

Anthropogenic input of chemical pollutants into the marine environment has led to substantial increases in the concentrations of naturally occurring trace metals. Related to this there is a growing concern regarding the occurrence of these elements in marine organisms and their hazard potential. In Latin America six of seven sea turtle species inhabit the coastal areas, and many studies evaluated the concentrations of metals in blood, tissues, eggs, and hatchlings of these animals. However, information for many countries is still unknown. Considering the results from all studies, a clear organotropism is found with higher levels of Cu, Mn, Pb, and Hg in the liver and Cd and As in the kidney. In blood, the highest concentration of Cd was from Mexican Lepidochelys olivacea. Chelonia mydas from Brazil showed the highest Pb and As levels, while Eretmochelys imbricata had the highest concentration of Hg. In eggs, the highest load of metals was incorporated in the yolk. Some publications correlated the contaminant levels with biochemical parameters, oxidative stress, and diseases. This chapter is a review of the available toxicological research and the biomarkers used as indicators of metal exposure in sea turtles from Latin America.