PL.RM. PALANIAPPAN, M. VADIVELU, V. VIJAYASUNDARAM

Department of Physics, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar – 608 002, Tamil Nadu, India

Lead is considered to be one of the most common toxic metals present in the environment, exposure to it being a major concern to public health. Fourier Transform (FT) Raman Spectroscopy can provide information on the molecular composition of a substance by detecting and analyzing light that is inelastically scattered from the substance following its excitation by monochromatic laser light. The present study aims to analyze the lead intoxicated muscle tissues of freshwater fingerlings stage of Catla catla with FT-Raman spectroscopy. FT-Raman spectra reveal significant differences in absorbance intensities between the control and lead-exposed muscle tissues, reflecting alterations in the biochemical constituents like proteins and lipids. This suggests a decrease in the nutritive value of muscle of C. catla fingerlings due to lead intoxication. The amide I maximum observed at ~1665 cm–1 indicates that the protein is dominated by α-helical secondary structures. In conclusion, the results suggest that FT-Raman Spectroscopy can be used as a tool for discrimination between normal and metal intoxicated tissues and to detect biochemical changes that occur as a result of metal intoxication.
Key words: Arsenic, FT-Raman, Catla catla, muscle, biochemical constituents.

Corresponding author’s e-mail: plrmpl@hotmail.com

Full text: PDF