Priority environmental contaminants in seafood: safety assessment, impact and public perception

Result description

Pinnatoxin-G belongs to the group of the cylcic imine toxins which are presently not regulated in food safety regulations. These toxis have been described in shellfish and in the organism that produces them, the dinoflagellate Vulcanodinium rugosum. This is the first description of pinnatoxins in the macroalga Saccharina latissima.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

References

Result description

Some marine toxins may be present in seafood in derivative forms. Some lipophilic toxins are present as acyl esters derivatives of these toxins that may not be properly identified in monitoring programme. This can consequently lead to a mis-evaluation of the real risk. This result contributes to obtaining acyl ester derivatives of lipophillic toxins which may be used to improve the analytical evaluation of all marine toxin derivatives present in seafood.

Result type

* RTD protocol/technical manual

Link to result

References

Result description

Ostreopsis spp. are marine microalgae that produce potent neurotoxins of the family of Palytoxins. These toxins, which have been involved in seafood poisonings by consumption of fish, are also present in other seafood, but are not yet regulated. Presently the distribution of Ostreopsis in coastal areas is increasing. The results of this work provide better knowledge on the species of Ostreopsis present in the environment (including identification) , their dynamics and their toxicological potency. Methods for the study of these species have also been improved.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

References

Result description

This research classifies European consumers into segments based on their health risk–benefit perception. This research underpins that in such information campaigns a nationally differentiated rather than a pan-European or international information strategy should be aimed for because of significant cultural differences between the identified segments.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

References

Jacobs, S., Sioan, I., Pieniak, Z., et al. (2014) Consumers' health risk-benefit perception of seafood and attitude toward the marine environment: Insights from five European countries. Environ. Res., 143(B), 11-19.

Result description

This is the first attempt focused on assessing the dietary exposure of human populations to musks by means of an integrated approach. Species of seafood of wide consumption among the population of Catalonia (Spain) were analyzed. The results from the survey showed a lack of nitromusks in all the samples,with levels below the MDL/MQL. In contrast, most of the polycyclic musks showed detectable levels in all the samples. HHCB and AHTN were the most abundant musks.The highest exposure was estimated for HHCB and HHCB-Lactone. Overall,the current intake of musks through seafood consumption should not mean a significant health risks for the population of Tarragona. Anyhow, a continuous monitoring is desirable to assure that the amount of musks in seafood as well as in other foodstuffs, does not follow an increasing trend. Furthermore, the role of other potentially important exposure routes,such as dermal absorption,should be studied in more detail.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25913711

References

Trabalon, L., Cano-Sancho, G., Pocurull, E., Nadal, M., Domingo, J. L. and F. Borrull (2015) Exposure of the population of Catalonia (Spain) to musk fragrances through seafood consumption: Risk assessment. Environ. Res., 143(B), 116-122.

Result description

2 strains of Ostreopsis cf. ovata were cultured under multifactorial conditions, salinity 36 and temperature 28 °C gave the highest cell abundance, higher toxin production was obtained at 28 °C and salinity 38, highest growth rates were obtained at 24 °C. The results show a high risk of toxicity related to the presence of Ostreopsis in these area. These results can be applied in the use of cultures to produce toxin standards.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26365038

References

Carnicer, O., Guallar, C., Andree, K. B., Diogene, J. and Fernandez-Tejedor, M. (2015) Ostreopsis cf. ovata dyanmics in the NW Mediterranean Sea in relation to biotic and abiotic factors. Environ. Res., 143(B), 89-99.

Result description

A fast, simple and robust analytical method has been developed for the simultaneous determination of 23 pharmaceuticals (including some major metabolites) in bivalve mollusks. The analytes determined belong to 8 different therapeutic groups including antibiotics, psychiatric drugs, analgesics/anti-inflammatories, tranquilizer, calcium channel blockers, diuretic, and prostatic hyperplasia. The method has been developed and validated in three different species of bivalves: Crassostrea gigas (Pacific oyster), Mytilus galloprovincialis (Mediterranean mussel), and Chamelea gallina (Striped venus clam). The method was applied to oyster, clam and mussel samples collected from the Ebro delta, Spain. The most ubiquitous compounds detected were the psychiatric drug venlanfaxine and the antibiotic azythromycin, with the highest concentrations found in mussel (2.7 ng/g dw) and oyster (3.02 ng/g dw), respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that azythromycin has been reported in environmental samples of biota.

Result type

* RTD protocol/technical manual

Link to result

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0039914014010182

References

Alvarez-Munoz, D., Huerta, B., Fernandez-Tejedor, M., Rodriguez-Mozaz, S. and D. Barcelo (2015) Multi-residue method for the analysis of pharmaceuticals and some of their metabolites in bivalves. Talanta, 136, 174-182.

Result description

Ostreopsis cf. ovata forms aggregates which difficult the quantification of these cells, several chemical treatments were applied to disrupt these aggregates, methodology was stablishedd to disrupt these aggregates.

Result type

* RTD protocol/technical manual

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26365039

References

Carnicer, O., Guallar, C., Andree, K. B., Diogene, J. and Fernandez-Tejedor, M. (2015) Ostreopsis cf. ovata dyanmics in the NW Mediterranean Sea in relation to biotic and abiotic factors. Environ. Res., 143(B), 89-99.

Result description

A marine organism, the dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata., is known to produce potent neurotoxins of the family of palytoxins. The different toxins of the group of palytoxins are described in six strains of this species. It is important to identify all toxin analogues in the producing organisms since different anlogues have different molecular structures and may have different toxic potentials.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00216-014-8338-y

References

Garcia-Altares, M., Tartagliona, L., Dell'Aversano, C., et al. (2015) The novel ovatoxin-g and isobaric palytoxin (so far referred to as putative palytoxin) from Ostreopsis cf. ovata (NW Meditteranean Sea): structural insights by LC-high resolution MSn. Anal. Bioanal. Chem., 407, 1191–1204.

Result description

A marine organism, the dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata., is known to produce potent neurotoxins of the family of palytoxins. Palytoxin had been obtained and described from marine corals and putative palytoxin from Ostreopsis cf. ovata. In this work, new data on the putatitve palytoxin, re-named in this article "isobaric palytoxin" are provided. It is important to identify all toxin analogues in the producing organisms since different anlogues have different molecular structures and may have different toxic potentials.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00216-014-8338-y

References

Garcia-Altares, M., Tartagliona, L., Dell'Aversano, C., et al. (2015) The novel ovatoxin-g and isobaric palytoxin (so far referred to as putative palytoxin) from Ostreopsis cf. ovata (NW Meditteranean Sea): structural insights by LC-high resolution MSn. Anal. Bioanal. Chem., 407, 1191–1204.

Result description

For Ostreopsis cf. ovata cell abundance is not a direct index of toxicity. The knowledge output shows the need to conduct more research in order to stablish alert values for palytoxins and the effects on the environment as well as to predict toxin accumulation in shellfish.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26365041

References

Carnicer, O., Guallar, C., Andree, K. B., Diogene, J. and Fernandez-Tejedor, M. (2015) Ostreopsis cf. ovata dyanmics in the NW Mediterranean Sea in relation to biotic and abiotic factors. Environ. Res., 143(B), 89-99.

Result description

This is the very first study aimed at providing evidences on the bioaccessibility of As, Hg and MeHg in marine species of high consumption in Catalonia. This investigation elucidates the potential overestimation of health risks for the consumers, when the effects of bioaccessibility and cooking procedures are considered in risk assessment. Unlike As, for which an overestimation of risk was not found, Hg and MeHg showed a lower and variable bioaccessibility in fish and seafood species. It means an obvious overestimation of health risks for the adult population. Further studies should be focused on the role of the bioaccessibility of mercurial species for children, the most sensitive population subgroup.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26409124

References

Cano-Sancho, G., Perello, G., Maulvault, A. L., Marques, A., Nadal, M. and J. L. Domingo (2015) Oral bioaccessibility of arsenic, mercury and methylmercury in marine species commercialized in Catalonia (Spain) and health risks for the consumers. Food Chem. Toxicol., 86, 34-40.

Result description

In this study, the risk of emerging compounds (endocrine disruptors, brominated flame retardants, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, toxic elements, etc.) in seafood was prioritized according to their PBT properties (persistence, bioaccumulation, toxicity), as well as to their concentration levels in seafood. A Hazard Index (HI) was estimated for each compound by applying an artificial neural network approach known as Self-Organizing-Maps. Subsequently, an Integrated Risk Index (IRI) was developed taking into account the Hazard Index and the concentrations of emerging compounds in seafood species gathered from scientific literature. The outcome of this framework identified the priority contaminants and should help policy-makers and scientific panels to design screening programs and to take the appropriate measures.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

References

Result description

Biochemical assays for the determination of emerging marine toxins are interesting methods to be used as alternative to conventional techniques. A new ELISA for the detection of the emerging toxin tetrodotoxin (TTX) as been developed. This ELISA is based on the immobilisation of TTX on dithiol self-assembled monolayers on maleimide plates (mELISA).

Result type

* product

Link to result

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.analchem.5b02158

References

Reverte, L., de la Iglesia, P., del Pio, V., et al. (2015) Detection of tetrodotoxins in puffer fish by a self-assembled monolayer-based immunoassay and comparison with surface plasmon resolnance, LC-MS/MS, and mouse bioassay. Anal. Chem., 87(21), 10839-10847.

Result description

Development of an ELISA for the Detection of Azaspiracids in shellfish, algal cells, and culture supernatants

Result type

* product

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26245830

References

Samdal, I. A., Lovberg, K. E., Briggs, L. R., Kilcoyne, J., Xu, J., Forsyth, C. J. and C. O. Miles (2015) Development of an ELISA for the Detection of Azaspiracids. J. Agric. Food Chem., 63(35), 7855-7861.

Result description

The study reports the application of two GC–MS methodologies to explore the levels of 12 UV-filters and 10 musk fragrances in highly consumed seafood species and algae from four European hotspot locations. BP3,DHMB,OMC,OC were the UV-filters detected in mussels, clams and mullet, but all at levels below the MQL. Galaxolide(HHCB) and tonalide(AHTN) were the musk fragrances most frequently quantified in samples from the European hotspots. Cashmeran(DPMI) was also detected in most of samples but only quantified in flounder and mullet.The highest levels of HHCB and AHTN were found in mussels from Po estuary.Co-occurrence of UV-filters and musk fragrances contaminants was verified in Ebro-delta as well as inTagus delta.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=ooccurrence+of+musk+fragrances+and++UVfilters+in+seafood+and+macroalgae+collected+in+European+hotspot

References

Cunha, S. C., Fernandes, J. O., Vallecillos, L., et al. (2015) Co-occurrence of musk fragrances and UV-filters in seafood and macroalgae colected in European hotspots. Environ. Res., 143(B), 65-71.

Result description

Ciguatoxins are potent neurotoxins that can cause poisining at very low quantities. Their detection and quantification is not always possible with analytical techniques. The cell based assay, allows to detect low amounts of toxins in fish and therefore has been useful to screen toxins in lionfish.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0041010115001452

References

Solino, L., Widgy, S., Pautonnier, A., et al. (2015) Prevalence of ciguatoxins in lionfish (Pterois spp.) from Guadelope, Saint Martin, and Saint Barthelmy Islands (Caribbean). Toxicon, 102, 62-68.

Result description

Cyclic Imines are considered to be Emergent Marine Toxins that are not yet regulated in the EU. The European and Food Safety Authority has requested to obtain additional knowledge on the presence of these toxins in the environment and in seafood, and to assess their toxicity and risk. This publication provides results on the presence of some cyclic imines, spirolides and pinnatoxins, in seafood and in the environment in Catalan waters, providing an analytical approach applicable to future monitoring of these toxins.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/12/6/3706

References

Garcia-Altares, M., Casmova, A., Bane, V., Diogene, J., Furey, A. and de la Iglesia, P. (2014) Confirmation of pinnatoxin and spirolides in shellfish and passive samplers from Catalonia (Spain) by liquid chrmoatograph couple with triple quadrupole and high-resolution hybrid tandem mass spectrometry. Marine Drugs, 12(6), 3706-3732.

Result description

The relationships between PCE and awareness of causes of contaminants in the marine environment, and concern about marine environmental problems were investigated by applying a Structural Equation Model (SEM). European consumers have high concern about marine environmental problems with participants from the southern countries reporting the highest concern. In addition, the study participants did not have a strong belief in themselves in being capable of making a difference in tackling marine environmental problems. However, a higher awareness, which is associated with a higher degree of concern, enhanced the belief that an individual can make a difference in tackling marine environmental problems, but only when a concrete action is proposed. Consequently, information campaigns concentrating on pro-environmental behavior are recommended to raise the awareness about marine environmental problems and at the same time indicate concrete actions. By doing this, the general public perceives that their own individual actions can make a difference, e.g. in decreasing the pollution of the marine environment. When only awareness and concern are raised, without giving a concrete action, PCE will be lower and the communication activity will probably not result in enhancing pro-environmental behavior.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935115300530

References

Jacobs, S., Sioen, I., De Henauw, S., et al. (2015) Marine environmental contamination: public awareness, concern and perceived effectiveness in five European countries. Env. Res., 143(B), 4-10.

Result description

A data set on the presence of Hg (total and MeHg), As (total and iAS), Cd, Pb, Co, Cu, Ni, Zn and Fe in seafood species from different hotspot areas of metal pollution in Europe reveals: a) % of MeHg with respect to total Hg is extremelly low in bivalves compared to fish, even if the levels of total Hg are simillar; b) seafood species can accumulate high levels of total As, but the highest levels of iAs are usually found in macroalgae, though with strong interspecific variability; c) bioindicator species vary according to toxic elemnts (e.g. predatory fish for MeHg; L.aminariadigitata for iAs and bivalves for Cu, Zn, Co, Cr and Fe); d) the analyses of elements speciation should be accounted in the guidelines/regulations regarding seafood safety.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

References

Result description

The toxicity data of several chemicals was integrated with concentration and seafood consumption data, building an integrated risk index for seafood contaminants (IRISC) able to draw a map of risk for each chemical and family of chemicals. A pilot trial was performed on a sample of 74 pollutants, four seafood species and five European countries (Belgium, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain).The preliminary results revealed that Portugal and Spain presented the highest IRISC,while Belgium was the region with the lowest IRISC.The IRISC provides a friendly approach to the chemical risk scene in Europe ,establishing normalized prioritization criteria considering toxicity and consumption as well as concentration of each chemical.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://I146:I154www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25795543

References

Cano-Sancho, G., Sioen, I., Vandermeersch, G., Jacobs, S., Robbens, J., Nadal, N. and J. L. Domnigo (2015) Integrated risk index for seafood contaminants (IRISC): Pilot study in five European countries. Environ. Res., 143(B), 109-115.

Result description

This database has been developed to collect all the information gathered from scientific literature and national and international monitoring programs concerning priority environmental contaminants. It is a useful monitoring tool for seafood risk assessment that enables to decide the contaminants to be monitored in seafood species. The database includes data about priority contaminants in marine environment that give rise to concern from an environmental and public health point of view like brominated flame retardants, endocrine disruptors, toxic element species, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, perfluorinated compounds, microplastics and marine biotoxins. The database will be updated throughout the whole project duration, in order to include the most recent and relevant information available from different sources. ECsafeSEAFOOD results will also be uploaded to the database as they become available.

Result type

* software/modelling tools

Link to result

http://www.ecsafeseafooddbase.eu/

References

Result description

Brominated flame retardants (BFRs), frequently applied to industrial and household products to make them less flammable, are highly persistent in the environment and cause multi-organ toxicity in human and wildlife. Based on the review of BFRs presence in seafood published from 2004 to 2014, it is clear that such pollutants are not ideally controlled as the surveys are too restricted, legislation inexistent for some classes, the analytical methodologies diversified, and several factors such as food processing and eating habits are generally overlooked. Indeed, while a seafood rich diet presents plenty of nutritional benefits, it can also represent a potential source of these environmental contaminants. It is of major importance to review and enhance these control procedures since seafood constitutes a chief pathway for human exposure and biomagnification of priority environmental contaminants, such as BFRs. The main purpose of the review is to summarise the actual status of seafood consumption and levels of the BFR classes, their major sources, environmental fate as well as the ongoing legislation and future needs. It highlights that more objective studies focused on the variability factors behind contamination levels, and subsequent human exposure, are necessary to support the necessity for more restricted legislation worldwide.

Result type

* Book/Review

Link to result

References

Result description

The pattern of Ostreopsis cf. ovata proliferations has been described, temperature has been found to be the main driver for these blooms. The knowledge output shows the need to stablish specific monitoring programs for benthic dinoflagellates at least during the bloom period.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26365040

References

Carnicer, O., Guallar, C., Andree, K. B., Diogene, J. and Fernandez-Tejedor, M. (2015) Ostreopsis cf. ovata dyanmics in the NW Mediterranean Sea in relation to biotic and abiotic factors. Environ. Res., 143(B), 89-99.

Result description

When applying biochemical assays to the analysis of natural samples, matrix effects could interfere in the toxin contents quantifications. The effect of gonads, skin, intestinal tract, muscle and liver on the mELISA and SPR for tetrodotoxin (TTX) has been studied. The maximum concentrations of sample to use as well as the corresponding correction factors have been stablished. This ELISA is based on the immobilisation of TTX on dithiol self-assembled monolayers on maleimide plates (mELISA).

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.analchem.5b02161

References

Reverte, L., de la Iglesia, P., del Pio, V., et al. (2015) Detection of tetrodotoxins in puffer fish by a self-assembled monolayer-based immunoassay and comparison with surface plasmon resolnance, LC-MS/MS, and mouse bioassay. Anal. Chem., 87(21), 10839-10847.

Result description

Extracts from 27 strains of Ostreopsis from Reunion Island were evaluated for toxicity using the haemolytic assay. All of the extracts were negative (under detection level). The results show a low risk of toxicity related to the presence of Ostreopsis in these area.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.7872/crya.v36.iss1.2015.102

References

Carnicer, O., Tunin-Ley, A., Andree, K. B., Turquet, J., Diogene, J. and M. Fernandez-Tejedor (2015) Contribution to the genus Ostreopsis in Reunion Island (Indian Ocean): molecular, morphologic and toxicity characterization Cryptogamie. Algologie, 36(1), 101-119.

Result description

Several anologues of ciguatoxins exist and it is important to characterize the toxins present in seafood. Using liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry has been useful to identify C-CTX-1 in lionfish from Saint Barthélémy.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0041010115001452

References

Solino, L., Widgy, S., Pautonnier, A., et al. (2015) Prevalence of ciguatoxins in lionfish (Pterois spp.) from Guadelope, Saint Martin, and Saint Barthelmy Islands (Caribbean). Toxicon, 102, 62-68.

Result description

The ocurrence and levels of PhACs, Endocrine Disrupting and related Compounds (EDCs) in seafood from potential contaminated areas in Europe has been studied. Macroalgae, bivalves and fish from Portugal, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, and Norway were analysed . The results revealed the presence of 4 pharmaceutical compounds in macroalgae samples, 16 in bivalves and 10 in fish. The highest levels of PhACs corresponded to the psychiatric drug velanfaxine (up to 36.1 ng/g dry weight (dw)) and the antibiotic azithromycin (up to 13.3 ng/g dw) in bivalves from the Po delta (Italy). EDCs were not detected in macroalgae samples, however, the analysis revealed the presence of 10 EDCs in bivalves and 8 in fish. The highest levels corresponded to the organophosphorus flame retardant tris(2-butoxyethyl)phosphate (TBEP) reaching up to 98.4 ng/g dw in mullet fish from the Tagus estuary. Taking into consideration the concentrations and frequencies of detection of PhACs and EDCs in the seafood samples analysed, a list of candidates’ compounds for priorization in future studies has been proposed.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

References

Result description

Ciguatoxins are potent neurotoxins that can be found in fish mainly in intertropical areas and that can cause ciguatera fish poisoning. This poisoning can affect people over months and years due to the associated neurological effects. Consumption of lionfish, an invasive species in the Caribbean, has been considered a a potential way of reducing its impact. However in some areas the presence of ciguatoxins in lionfish should be a criteria to prohibit its consumption.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0041010115001452

References

Solino, L., Widgy, S., Pautonnier, A., et al. (2015) Prevalence of ciguatoxins in lionfish (Pterois spp.) from Guadelope, Saint Martin, and Saint Barthelmy Islands (Caribbean). Toxicon, 102, 62-68.

Result description

36 strains isolated from Reunion Island were sequenced the results sublited to GenBank, GenBank accession numbers are listed in table 1 of the published areticle.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.7872/crya.v36.iss1.2015.101

References

Carnicer, O., Tunin-Ley, A., Andree, K. B., Turquet, J., Diogene, J. and M. Fernandez-Tejedor (2015) Contribution to the genus Ostreopsis in Reunion Island (Indian Ocean): molecular, morphologic and toxicity characterization Cryptogamie. Algologie, 36(1), 101-119.

Result description

Strains are maintained at the IRTA (Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology) culture collection.

Result type

* product

Link to result

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26365042

References

Carnicer, O., Guallar, C., Andree, K. B., Diogene, J. and Fernandez-Tejedor, M. (2015) Ostreopsis cf. ovata dyanmics in the NW Mediterranean Sea in relation to biotic and abiotic factors. Environ. Res., 143(B), 89-99.

Result description

It is important to determine the affinity of different toxin analogues towards an antibody in order to understand the results provided by the analysis of samples with multi-toxin profiles. The analogues 5,6,11-trideoxy tetrodotoxin (TTX), 5,11-deoxyTTX, norTTX-6-ol and 5,6,11-trideoxy-4-anhydroTTX have been isolated from several specimens of silver-cheeked toadfishes (L. sceleratus) and purified by Hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) fractionation. LC-MS/MS has been applied to assess the fraction purity.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.analchem.5b02159

References

Reverte, L., de la Iglesia, P., del Pio, V., et al. (2015) Detection of tetrodotoxins in puffer fish by a self-assembled monolayer-based immunoassay and comparison with surface plasmon resolnance, LC-MS/MS, and mouse bioassay. Anal. Chem., 87(21), 10839-10847.

Result description

A marine organism, the dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata., is known to produce potent neurotoxins of the family of palytoxins. Ovatoxin G is a new toxin of the family of palytoxins. It is important to identify all toxin analogues in the producing organisms since different anlogues have different molecular structures and may have different toxic potentials.

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00216-014-8338-y

References

Garcia-Altares, M., Tartagliona, L., Dell'Aversano, C., et al. (2015) The novel ovatoxin-g and isobaric palytoxin (so far referred to as putative palytoxin) from Ostreopsis cf. ovata (NW Meditteranean Sea): structural insights by LC-high resolution MSn. Anal. Bioanal. Chem., 407, 1191–1204.

Result description

The presence of puffer fish has been recently reported in Europe and the analysis of those samples is on interest in order to guarantee the public health and to protect the consumer. The TTXs content in silver-cheeked toadfishes from Greece has been determined by mELISA, SPR, LC-MS/MS and mouse bioassay (MBA). Results provided by the immunochemical tools when compared with those obtained by LC-MS/MS, showed a good degree of correlation. The MBA slightly overestimated the TTXs contents compared to the other techniques. This ELISA is based on the immobilisation of TTX on dithiol self-assembled monolayers on maleimide plates (mELISA).

Result type

* exploitable scientific result

Link to result

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.analchem.5b02162

References

Reverte, L., de la Iglesia, P., del Pio, V., et al. (2015) Detection of tetrodotoxins in puffer fish by a self-assembled monolayer-based immunoassay and comparison with surface plasmon resolnance, LC-MS/MS, and mouse bioassay. Anal. Chem., 87(21), 10839-10847.

Result description

Since some lionfish from the Caribbean present ciguatoxins, consumption of this species is therefore not free of ciguatera risk. This confirms previous conclusions obtained by other scientists.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0041010115001452

References

Solino, L., Widgy, S., Pautonnier, A., et al. (2015) Prevalence of ciguatoxins in lionfish (Pterois spp.) from Guadelope, Saint Martin, and Saint Barthelmy Islands (Caribbean). Toxicon, 102, 62-68.

Result description

It is important to determine the affinity of different toxin analogues towards an antibody in order to understand the results provided by the analysis of samples with multi-toxin profiles. The cross-reactivity factors for TTX analogues respect to an anti-TTX monoclonal antibody (MAb) have been established by mELISA and SPR. The values varied depending on the technique, due to the different binding kinetics. This ELISA is based on the immobilisation of TTX on dithiol self-assembled monolayers on maleimide plates (mELISA).

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Link to result

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.analchem.5b02160

References

Reverte, L., de la Iglesia, P., del Pio, V., et al. (2015) Detection of tetrodotoxins in puffer fish by a self-assembled monolayer-based immunoassay and comparison with surface plasmon resolnance, LC-MS/MS, and mouse bioassay. Anal. Chem., 87(21), 10839-10847.

Result description

A fast, simple and robust analytical method has been developed for the simultaneous determination of 23 pharmaceuticals (including some major metabolites) in bivalve mollusks. The analytes determined belong to 8 different therapeutic groups including antibiotics, psychiatric drugs, analgesics/anti-inflammatories, tranquilizer, calcium channel blockers, diuretic, and prostatic hyperplasia. The method has been developed and validated in three different species of bivalves: Crassostrea gigas (Pacific oyster), Mytilus galloprovincialis (Mediterranean mussel), and Chamelea gallina (Striped venus clam). The method was applied to oyster, clam and mussel samples collected from the Ebro delta, Spain. The most ubiquitous compounds detected were the psychiatric drug venlanfaxine and the antibiotic azythromycin, with the highest concentrations found in mussel (2.7 ng/g dw) and oyster (3.02 ng/g dw), respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that azythromycin has been reported in environmental samples of biota.

Result type

* RTD protocol/technical manual

Link to result

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0039914014010182

References

Alvarez-Munoz, D., Huerta, B., Fernandez-Tekedor, M., Rodriguez-Mozaz, S. and D. Barcelo (2015) Multi-residue method for the analysis of pharmeceuticals and some of their metabolites in bivalves. Talanta, 136, 174-182.

Result description

A variation of 4ºC in seawater temperature increases MeHg bioaccumulation in marine fish species. Brain is the primary organ for MeHg accumulation in marine fish species. The ability to eliminate MeHg was reduced by warmer temperatures. The expected effects of climate change should be forseen in future guidelines and regulations regarding the presence of contaminants in seafood.

Result type

* Scientific Publication

Exploitable results