Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa as potential indicators of ciguatera risk in the Balearic Islands

Ciguatera poisoning (CP) results from the consumption of seafood contaminated with ciguatoxins (CTXs). This disease is highly prevalent in French Polynesia with several well-identified hotspots. Rapa Island, the southernmost inhabited island in the country, was reportedly free of CP until 2007. This study describes the integrated approach used to investigate the etiology of a fatal mass-poisoning outbreak that occurred in Rapa in 2009. Symptoms reported in patients were evocative of ciguatera. Several Gambierdiscus field samples collected from benthic assemblages tested positive by the receptor binding assay (RBA). Additionally, the toxicity screening of ≈250 fish by RBA indicated ≈78% of fish could contain CTXs. The presence of CTXs in fish was confirmed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The potential link between climate change and this range expansion of ciguatera to a subtropical locale of French Polynesia was also examined based on the analysis of temperature time-series data. Results are indicative of a global warming trend in Rapa area. A five-fold reduction in incidence rates was observed between 2009 and 2012, which was due in part to self-regulating behavior among individuals (avoidance of particular fish species and areas). Such observations underscore the prominent role played by community outreach in ciguatera risk management.

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 57%

Evidence for the Range Expansion of Ciguatera in French Polynesia: A Revisit of the 2009 Mass-Poisoning Outbreak in Rapa Island (Australes Archipelago)

Chinain

Gatti

Ung

et al. 2020

“…Nevertheless, increasing occurrence and spread of Gambierdiscus to temperate regions has been reported and seems to be favored by the climate warming trends [ 11 , 12 ]. Coincident with CP outbreaks, Gambierdiscus have been detected in NE Atlantic subtropical-temperate regions, such as the Canary and Madeira Islands, and even in the Mediterranean Sea [ 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Update on Ciguatoxins and CTX-like Toxicity in Fish from Different Trophic Levels of the Selvagens Islands (NE Atlantic, Madeira, Portugal)

Costa

Estevez

Soliño

et al. 2021

Self Cite

The Selvagens Islands, which are a marine protected area located at the southernmost point of the Portuguese maritime zone, have been associated with fish harboring ciguatoxins (CTX) and linked to ciguatera fish poisonings. This study reports the results of a field sampling campaign carried out in September 2018 in these remote and rarely surveyed islands. Fifty-six fish specimens from different trophic levels were caught for CTX-like toxicity determination by cell-based assay (CBA) and toxin content analysis by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Notably, high toxicity levels were found in fish with an intermediate position in the food web, such as zebra seabream (Diplodus cervinus) and barred hogfish (Bodianus scrofa), reaching levels up to 0.75 µg CTX1B equivalent kg−1. The LC-MS/MS analysis confirmed that C-CTX1 was the main toxin, but discrepancies between CBA and LC-MS/MS in D. cervinus and top predator species, such as the yellowmouth barracuda (Sphyraena viridis) and amberjacks (Seriola spp.), suggest the presence of fish metabolic products, which need to be further elucidated. This study confirms that fish from coastal food webs of the Selvagens Islands represent a high risk of ciguatera, raising important issues for fisheries and environmental management of the Selvagens Islands.

“…Phylogenetic analysis (methodology described in the Supplementary file ) based on multiple alignments (Clustal2.1) of all the available DNA sequences (n = 345) of the D8–D10 region of the large sub unit (LSU) of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) [ 9 , 11 , 14 , 15 , 25 , 26 , 40 , 43 , 44 , 89 , 96 , 97 , 98 , 99 , 100 , 101 , 102 , 103 , 104 , 105 , 106 , 107 , 108 , 109 , 110 , 111 , 112 , 113 , 114 ] distributes the Gambierdiscus genus into five major clades (clade I–V) as seen in Figure 8 . Clade II and III exclusively contain the species G. australes (Atlantic and Pacific strains) and G. excentricus (Atlantic strains), respectively.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ciguatera in the Indian Ocean with Special Insights on the Arabian Sea and Adjacent Gulf and Seas: A Review

Habibi

Uddin

Bottein

et al. 2021

The dinoflagellates of the genus Gambierdiscus are found in almost all oceans and seas between the coordinates 35° N and 35° S. Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa are producers of ciguatoxins (CTXs), which are known to cause foodborne disease associated with contaminated seafood. The occurrence and effects of CTXs are well described in the Pacific and the Caribbean. However, historically, their properties and presence have been poorly documented in the Indian Ocean (including the Bay of Bengal, Andaman Sea, and the Gulf). A higher occurrence of these microorganisms will proportionately increase the likelihood of CTXs entering the food chain, posing a severe threat to human seafood consumers. Therefore, comprehensive research strategies are critically important for developing effective monitoring and risk assessments of this emerging threat in the Indian Ocean. This review presents the available literature on ciguatera occurrence in the region and its adjacent marginal waters: aiming to identify the data gaps and vectors.