Esterases and lipid peroxidation levels in two commercial fish, Phycis blennoides and Micromesistius poutassou and the deep-sea decapod crustacean Aristeus antennatus from the NW Mediterranean

Few studies have monitored neurotoxicity biomarkers in offshore marine areas. To partly fill this gap in information we sampled thegadiform fishPhycis blennoidesandMicromesistius poutassouand the crustacean decapodAristeus antennatus, all species of great com-mercial interest in the Mediterranean, offshore the coast of Blanes (41.0N 3.0E; NE Spain) in two different grounds located in a submarinecanyon. The trawling took place in July 2006, at depths of 585 m, canyon head close to the coast, and at 841 m, in the canyon axis andfurther from the coast. Esterase activities and lipid peroxidation levels were measured individually in muscle tissue and activities/levelsrecorded are discussed in relation to sampling depths, animal sex and size