Effect of copper sulfate on some physiological parameters of ornamental fish food chain in a laboratory model

Due to the increasing of industries on the coast and the development of coastal cities, aquatic ecosystems and species are affected by discharged pollutants, especially heavy metals. After entering aquatic ecosystems, heavy metals accumulate in aquatic tissues, including fish, and eventually enter the food chain, which can enter the human body through feeding on contaminated fish. The aim of this study was to determine the amount of copper as a heavy metal and its transferring during the food chain of ornamental fish to estimate the presence of contaminants in the food chain. So the effect of copper sulfate (CuS04) and its transmission were investigated in the food chain of Artemia franciscana, Danio rerio (Zebra) and Astronotus ocellatus (Oscar).  Initially, lethal concentration of Cu on Artemia was obtained in 24 hours. At the first step, infected Artemia was fed to zebrafish Danio rerio as the second consumer in two separate environments (clean water and water containing 10% of CuS04). At the second step, zebra fish were fed Oscar fish Astronotus ocellatus as the third consumer in two separate environments (unpolluted water and water containing 10% of CuS04). In the last step, CuS04 was measured in the liver tissue of zebrafish and scar. Also, changes in glucose and alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and acid phosphatase (ACP) enzymes were measured. The results of this study showed a significant increase in zebra fish and oscar under different treatments exposed to this heavy metal. In addition, a significant increase was observed in different enzymes (ALT, AST, and ACP) and glucose, which indicates damage to body tissues..