Abstract
Azaspiracids (AZA) are polyether marine toxins that accumulate in various shellfish species and have been associated with severe gastrointestinal human intoxications since 1995. This toxin class has since been reported from several countries, including Morocco and much of western Europe. A regulatory limit of 160 μg AZA/kg whole shellfish flesh was established by the EU in order to protect human health; however, in some cases, AZA concentrations far exceed the action level. Herein we discuss recent advances on the chemistry of various AZA analogs, review the ecology of AZAs, including the putative progenitor algal species, collectively interpret the in vitro and in vivo data on the toxicology of AZAs relating to human health issues, and outline the European legislature associated with AZAs.
Highlights
In 1995, there was an outbreak of human illness in the Netherlands that was associated with ingestion of contaminated shellfish originating from Killary Harbour, Ireland
The symptoms were typical of diarrhetic shellfish poisoning (DSP) toxins such as okadaic acid (OA) and dinophysistoxins (DTX), the levels of DSP toxins in these shellfish were well below the regulatory level
Compared to mice orally exposed to OA, the damage elicited by AZA was slower in onset with much longer times required for recovery 73
Summary
In 1995, there was an outbreak of human illness in the Netherlands that was associated with ingestion of contaminated shellfish originating from Killary Harbour, Ireland. Over the two years it was established that these shellfish were contaminated with a unique marine toxin, originally named “Killary-toxin” or KT-3 1. Since the original azaspiracid poisoning (AZP) event, four additional AZP events have occurred due to contaminated Irish mussels (Table 1). The stage is set to move forward rapidly in improving our overall understanding of AZAs. While certain aspects of these toxins and their pharmacological effects have been summarized previously [6, 7], we feel the timing is appropriate to critically review the advances in AZA research over the last 12 years emphasizing the chemistry, ecology, toxicology and human health impacts of AZAs, and identifying critical areas for future research
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