Aljohani 2023 — Heavy metal toxicity in poultry: a comprehensive review
This narrative review synthesizes worldwide evidence on the bioaccumulation of arsenic (As), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg) in poultry tissues (kidney, liver, meat, egg, blood) and the resulting histopathological and toxicological effects. The review tabulates measured concentrations from primary studies spanning Turkey, Malaysia, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, China, India, Bangladesh, Tunisia, Thailand, and Iran, providing a multi-country reference for poultry tissue metal occurrence. Evidence tier is B because this is a narrative review rather than a primary occurrence study, though the compiled Table 1 draws on primary A-tier studies.
Key numbers
Compiled from Table 1 across multiple primary studies (units mg/kg or ppm unless noted):
Cadmium in liver: ranges from 0.039–0.627 mg/kg (Turkey, ref 106), 0.095–1.213 mg/kg (Pakistan, ref 110), 4.69–20.4 mg/kg (China, ref 112), 0.388–19 ppm eggs (Saudi Arabia, ref 111). Toxic concentration threshold reported as 0.050 mg/kg in Turkish liver (ref 106).
Lead in liver/kidney: 0.065–0.103 mg/kg (Turkey, ref 106), 0.52–0.73 mg/kg muscle/liver (China mining area, ref 130), 1.85–11.838 mg/kg kidney/liver (Pakistan, ref 110), 2.397–9.008 mg/kg liver/brain (Bangladesh, ref 121).
Arsenic in meat/liver: 0.0802 mg/g breast meat and 0.0037 mg/g liver (Nigeria, ref 109).
Mercury: Noted as nephrotoxic and hepatotoxic at trace levels; specific tissue values referenced from Turkey (Hg in liver = 0.053 mg/kg, ref 106).
All concentrations are wet weight. Methods cited include atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) and ICP-OES.
Methods (brief)
Narrative literature review; no new primary data collected. Primary studies cited used AAS (PerkinElmer PinAAcle 900T and comparable instruments) and ICP-OES. Wet weight basis throughout. Review does not systematically distinguish speciated versus total arsenic in the cited studies, so all As values should be treated as total arsenic (tAs).
Implications
Certification: Poultry liver and kidney consistently carry the highest Cd and Pb burdens relative to muscle; relevant for HMT&C evaluations of organ-meat products. Courses: Provides a multi-country contamination snapshot useful for illustrating global distribution of poultry tissue metal burdens. App: Corroborates that poultry meat carries lower metal burdens than offal; supports tiered risk scoring for poultry products vs. organ meats.