Abstract
Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is a potent neurotoxin that is receiving increasing interest in the European Union because it has been found in different fishery products (fish, bivalves and gastropods) captured in European waters. Since available information is scarce, further analytical data regarding the incidence of this toxin in European fishery products is needed in order to perform an appropriate risk assessment devoted to protecting consumers’ health. Hence, samples of bivalves and gastropods were collected at different points of the Spanish coast and analyzed by high-performance hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HILIC-MS/MS) to evaluate the presence of TTX. None of the analyzed samples showed TTX above an internal threshold of 10 µg/kg or even showed a peak under it. Our results on TTX occurrence obtained in bivalve molluscs and gastropods did not show, at least in the studied areas, a risk for public health. However, taking into account previous positive results obtained by other research groups, and since we did not detect TTX in our samples, a more completed study increasing sampling frequency is needed to ensure proper risk evaluation towards the food safety of these products.
Highlights
Tetrodotoxin (TTX), a natural toxin exhibiting extreme neurotoxicity, has been found in many fish species, puffer fish, globefish and toadfish, and in arthropods, echinoderms, algae, molluscs, Nemertean worms and even in terrestrial animals such as amphibians
The present study aims to evaluate the occurrence of TTX-contaminated bivalves and gastropods in marine environments and areas near the mouths of rivers in different points along the Spanish coast: Galicia, in the northwest (NW); Catalonia, in the northeast (NE); and Valencia, in the east (E), along different seasons of the year
Concern about the occurrence of TTX in bivalves from temperate regions has triggered a number of studies globally, and high concentrations were detected in clams from New Zealand [15] as well as in mussels, oysters and hard clams from the UK [6,13,16]
Summary
Tetrodotoxin (TTX), a natural toxin exhibiting extreme neurotoxicity, has been found in many fish species, puffer fish, globefish and toadfish, and in arthropods, echinoderms, algae, molluscs, Nemertean worms and even in terrestrial animals such as amphibians. This toxin, considered a threat to human health in Asian countries, is restricted to warm water. Intoxications are characterized by tingling of the tongue and lips, headache, vomiting, muscle weakness, ataxia and even death due to respiratory and/or heart failure (reviewed in [1]). As there is no antidote available, patients must receive ventilator and hemodynamic support in order to keep the patient alive in the first 24 h after intoxication [2]
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