Abstract.-An endangered South Asian freshwater fish, Tor putitora netted from polluted part of River Kabul was studied for various muscle biochemical parameters and was compared with control fish caught from non polluted Warsak Dam water reservoir to investigate the remedies caused by the ambient pollution in the fish health. Fish muscle was analyzed for various biochemical parameters like total protein, soluble protein, total cholesterol, total lipid, glucose, free amino acid, DNA, RNA and free fatty acids and enzymes such as amylase, GOT, GPT and LDH. The muscles showed an increase in total muscle proteins (11.8% and 89.6%), total lipid (406.8% and 119.6%), DNA (18.7% and 18.8%) in sample 1 and 2 respectively. Soluble protein, however, remained unaffected in sample 1 but showed a drastic 77.35% increase in sample 2. The muscles showed a decrease in total cholesterol (17.22% and 12.43% ), glucose (41.26% and 51.00%) and RNA (23.95% and 40.04%) in sample 1 and sample 2 respectively. However, free amino acids decreased 12.14% in sample 1 and increased 31.3% in sample 2. Similarly free fatty acids decreased 53.5% in sample 1 but showed 97% higher value in sample 2. Among enzymes amylase (36.3% and 42.8%), LDH (21.8% and 45.8% ) increased, likewise GOT activity ( 18.72% and 43.34%) and GPT (45.82% and 48.6%) decreased in sample 1 and 2, respectively, as compared with that of control fish. The increase and decrease in various biochemical parameters and enzymes in the white muscle of test fish samples in comparison with the control, reveals the adverse effect of aquatic pollution on the inhabitant fish health. Pollution stress could be one of the reasons of rapid decline in population of this South Asian endangered freshwater fish
