Abstract:

A total of 18 live specimens of the black jaw tilapia, Sarotherodon melanotheron, mean weight (82.95 ±3.27g) and mean length (13.1 ±0.35cm), were sam-pled bimonthly for three months from the Makoko ar-ea, a slum neighbourhood, of Lagos Lagoon, to estab-lish the haematological and biochemical indices of the fish species which will serve as baseline for further studies and ascertain the health of the environment. The mean value and standard error of mean of some of the haematological parameters analyzed were: Hb: 89.65 ±3.63g/l, PCV: 27.47 ±0.58%, RBC: 3.05 ±0.06T/L, WBC: 10.02 ±0.40g/L, MCV: 86.87 ±1.39fl, MCH: 29.64±0.62pg, MCHC: 33.29 ±0.13g/dl, Neutrophils: 22.89 ±0.63%, Lymphocyte: 79.67 ±1.49% and Monocyte: 0.72 ±0.25%. No Eo-sinophils and Basophils were recorded in this study. While the mean and standard error of mean of the bio-chemical enzymes analyzed in IU/L, were: AST (76.84 ±4.08), ALT (23.06 ±2.12) and ALP (77.74 ±6.12). There was statistical significance (p<0.05) in the following haematological parameters: Hb, WBC, MCV, Neutrophils and Lymphocytes. There was sta-tistical significance (p<0.05) in all the biochemical indices. It was established that the water was polluted with heavy metals, sewage and other organic pollu-tants such as wood wastes, and that these pollutants have altered the haematology and biochemistry of the fish species.

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