Digital Technologies and Open Data Sources in Marine Biotoxins’ Risk Analysis: The Case of Ciguatera Fish Poisoning

Abstract

Currently, digital technologies influence information dissemination in all business sectors, with great emphasis put on exploitation strategies. Public administrations often use information systems and establish open data repositories, primarily supporting their operation but also serving as data providers, facilitating decision-making. As such, risk analysis in the public health sector, including food safety authorities, often relies on digital technologies and open data sources. Global food safety challenges include marine biotoxins (MBs), being contaminants whose mitigation largely depends on risk analysis. Ciguatera Fish Poisoning (CFP), in particular, is a MB-related seafood intoxication attributed to the consumption of fish species that are prone to accumulate ciguatoxins. Historically, CFP occurred endemically in tropical/subtropical areas, but has gradually emerged in temperate regions, including European waters, necessitating official policy adoption to manage the potential risks. Researchers and policy-makers highlight scientific data inadequacy, under-reporting of outbreaks and information source fragmentation as major obstacles in developing CFP mitigation strategies. Although digital technologies and open data sources provide exploitable scientific information for MB risk analysis, their utilization in counteracting CFP-related hazards has not been addressed to date. This work thus attempts to answer the question, “What is the current extent of digital technologies’ and open data sources’ utilization within risk analysis tasks in the MBs field, particularly on CFP?”, by conducting a systematic literature review of the available scientific and grey literature. Results indicate that the use of digital technologies and open data sources in CFP is not negligible. However, certain gaps are identified regarding discrepancies in terminology, source fragmentation and a redundancy and downplay of social media utilization, in turn constituting a future research agenda for this under-researched topic.

Current Trends and New Challenges in Marine Phycotoxins

“…Ciguatera fish poisoning or Ciguatera is the most common non-bacterial human illness associated with seafood consumption across the globe affecting between 50,000 and 500,000 people annually including rare lethal cases [ 26 , 27 , 28 ]. Ciguatoxins (CTXs) ( Figure 1 H) are lipid soluble, thermally-stable toxins responsible for Ciguatera and produced by microalgae within the Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa genus.…”

Emerging Marine Biotoxins in European Waters: Potential Risks and Analytical Challenges

“…Additionally, the effects of chronicle exposure are scarce or absent, with unknown consequences [ 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ]. The scarcity of reports could be also be due to their novelty in European territory, as health professionals are not aware of this new threat [ 34 ].…”

In vivo subchronic effects of ciguatoxin-related compounds, reevaluation of their toxicity

“…This syndrome comprises gastrointestinal, neurological, and cardiovascular symptoms (Lehane and Lewis 2000 ). Blooms of these dinoflagellates have expanded worldwide reaching even European coasts (Canals et al 2021 ; de Haro et al 2021 ; Katikou 2021 ; Murray et al 2021 ). The presence of Gambierdiscus species (Canals et al 2021 ; Katikou 2021 ), the related toxins (Tudó et al 2020 ) and CFP intoxications have been repetitively identified in Europe during the last decades (Canals et al 2021 ; Katikou 2021 ), especially in the Canary Islands (Canals et al 2021 ; Perez-Arellano et al 2005 ), Madeira (Otero et al 2010 ) and France (de Haro et al 2021 ).…”

“…Blooms of these dinoflagellates have expanded worldwide reaching even European coasts (Canals et al 2021 ; de Haro et al 2021 ; Katikou 2021 ; Murray et al 2021 ). The presence of Gambierdiscus species (Canals et al 2021 ; Katikou 2021 ), the related toxins (Tudó et al 2020 ) and CFP intoxications have been repetitively identified in Europe during the last decades (Canals et al 2021 ; Katikou 2021 ), especially in the Canary Islands (Canals et al 2021 ; Perez-Arellano et al 2005 ), Madeira (Otero et al 2010 ) and France (de Haro et al 2021 ). CFP is one of the most common forms of seafood poisoning, caused by the consumption of fish contaminated with ciguatoxins (CTXs) produced by microalgae of the genus Gambierdiscus (Bagnis et al 1979 ) and Fukuyoa (Gomez et al 2015 ).…”

“…The implications of all of these compounds in CFP have been suggested by several authors and lead to gastrointestinal, cardiovascular and neurological symptoms in humans that vary among patients and include paresthesia, generalized pruritus, painful dysesthesias, allodynia, ataxia and hyperalgesia (Botana 2016 ; Murray et al 2021 , 2020 ; WHO 2020 ). Traditionally CFP was typically found only in tropical and subtropical areas but during the last decade has expanded to other regions including Europe (Canals et al 2021 ; de Haro et al 2003 ; EFSA 2010 ; Katikou 2021 ), a fact that raises the need to establish regulations for the levels of these food contaminants.…”