Abstract
Consumption of raw oysters is known to cause serious health conditions due to bioaccumulation of contaminants. As filter feeders, oysters ingest bacteria along with phytoplankton from their surrounding habitats. Ensuring seafood safety for human consumption is always a concern. Since oysters are consumed raw, disease causing organisms, environmental contaminants, toxins, chemicals, and even physical hazards such as soils and metals retained in the oysters can enter through feeding. The objective of this study was to determine the quality of oysters collected from Delaware Inland Bays (DIB) and compare them with market oysters. Environmental parameters were monitored from local waters of DIB classified as closed versus open for shellfish harvesting. Total aerobic bacteria and vibrio were higher in market oysters during the warmer months, with open water having the least microbial loads. There were no significant differences in total vibrio counts between the study sites (p=0.396), but significant differences were recorded over time (p=0.004). Water temperature and turbidity were directly proportional to total vibrio in oysters, and salinity was inversely related. Research findings in this study may help bring awareness of changes in bacterial loads due to seasonal changes and additional handling and storage.
Highlights
20 million Americans consume raw oysters, and when eaten raw, they pose health risks due to the potential exposure to pathogenic bacteria such as Vibrio vulni cus and Vibrio parahaemolyticus [1, 2]
People with health conditions such as liver disease, iron overload disease, diabetes, cancer, and stomach disorders are at high risk for serious illness or death from V. vulni cus infections [1]
The Florida Department of Health issued a press release warning to residents with certain health conditions to avoid eating raw oysters and exposing open wounds to seawater and estuarine areas due to the potential exposure to V. vulni cus bacteria [3]
Summary
20 million Americans consume raw oysters, and when eaten raw, they pose health risks due to the potential exposure to pathogenic bacteria such as Vibrio vulni cus and Vibrio parahaemolyticus [1, 2]. Eastern oyster quality was determined through physical (color, texture, pH, and moisture), chemical (protein, total lipids, fatty acids, and glycogen), and microbial (aerobic and psychrotropic bacteria and total and fecal coliform) analyses during the warmer months in this two-year study. Our hypotheses in this project are twofold: total bacteria and Vibrionaceae concentrations are strongly related to environmental quality and market oyster quality is poorer than the Delaware Inland Bays’ oysters
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