©2016 Pearl Research Journals Determination of Some Trace Elements Cu, Fe, Pb And Zn In The Gills, Muscle and Tissues of Claria gariepinus and Oreochromis niloticus Found Along River Yobe Abubakar El-Ishaq*, Akinsola R.Omotayo and Ishaku Hussaini Accepted 18 January, 2016 Department of Science Laboratory Technology, School of Science and Technology, Federal Polytechnic Damaturu, Yobe State, Nigeria. ABSTRACT River Yobe supports many activities leading to its extensive contamination and accumulation of heavy metals. These can cause environmental and public health hazards. To ascertain the quality of the water in the river. The study was carried out to determine some of trace element copper, iron, lead and zinc, concentration in gills, tissues and muscle of Claria gariepinus and Oreochromis niloticus being the most dominant fish species in river in year 2015. Two samples each of C. gariepinus and O. niloticus were collected from the river, and the concentration of the (Cu, Fe, Pb, and Zn) were determined. Using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS 210 RAP BUCK). The study revealed the concentration of iron in the gills, tissue and muscle of both fish: O. niloticus 2.74±1.54, 1.17±0.73, and 0.46±0.46 mgkg -1 . For gills, tissue and muscle of C. gariepinus 3.58 ±1.69, 2.34±1.9 and 2.03±1.21 mgkg -1 , respectively. The metal concentrations occur in order Fe, Zn, Cu and Pb. In general, accumulation of the essential element Zn, Fe, Cu, were higher than the non essential element Pb. There is a high concentration of Fe at a significant level (P<0.05) in the study fishes when compared with other elements, followed by the Zn; Pb and Cu appeared at the bottom ladder. However, there is no significant variation (P>0.05) observed among the Zinc, lead and Copper accumulate in the gills of both species. Key words: Diffusion, food chain, Half life, Heavy metals, Hydrophobic, River Yobe and Toxicity. *Corresponding author. E-mail: ishaq_abubakar@yahoo.com. INTRODUCTION Metals such as Cu, Fe, Pb and Zn are regarded as essential trace metal given their valuable roles for metabolic activities in human (Oluwusi-Peters et al., 2014). Other metals like Cd, Ni, and Hg exhibit extreme toxicity even at trace level (Merian,1991; Olaifa et al., 2004). However, it is of interest to note that essential metal is toxic when supplied in concentration more than the optimum levels (FEPA,1991). Tam and Wong (1995) stated that heavy metals contamination of the aquatic environment is a critical concern due to the toxicity of metals and their accumulation in an aquatic habitat. River Yobe is one of prominent water body in Yobe state, Nigeria. The main uses of the river in it catchment include domestic use, swimming, transportation and fishing. In addition, domestic, industrial and agriculture waste are dumped into the river as such causing contamination and accumulation in the aquatic biota. Among the aquatic fauna, fish is the most susceptible to heavy metal toxicant (Nwaedozie, 1998). They are more sensitive to metal contamination than any other aquatic fauna. As a result, fishes are considered as a better specimen for investigation of pollutant loads than water sample because of the significant level of metal they bioaccumulate (Atuma and Egborge, 1986). It is significantly important to determine and monitor heavy metal level in foodstuffs, particularly sea and freshwater food. Heavy metal ion can easily accumulate in such food compared to other foodstuffs that can course harmful effect on human health (Allen-Gill and Marynor, 1995). Discharge of industrial water or wastewater without a pre- treatment into the lake, rivers, stream, and sea, primarily Journal of Medical and Biological Science Research Vol. 2 (1), pp. 27-32, February, 2016 ISSN: 2449-1810 Full Length Research Paper http://pearlresearchjournals.org/journals/jmbsr/index.html