Sentinel Animals in a One Health Approach to Harmful Cyanobacterial and Algal Blooms

Abstract

People, domestic animals, and wildlife are all exposed to numerous environmental threats, including harmful algal blooms (HABs). However, because animals exhibit wide variations in diet, land use and biology, they are often more frequently or heavily exposed to HAB toxins than are people occupying the same habitat, making them sentinels for human exposures. Historically, we have taken advantage of unique physiological characteristics of animals, such as the sensitivity of canaries to carbon monoxide, to more quickly recognize threats and help protect human health. As HAB events become more severe and widespread worldwide, exposure and health outcome data for animals can be extremely helpful to predict, prevent, and evaluate human exposures and health outcomes. Applying a One Health approach to investigation of HABs means that lessons learned from animal sentinels can be applied to protect people, animals and our shared environment.

Biodiversity of cyanobacteria and other aquatic microorganisms across a freshwater to brackish water gradient determined by shotgun metagenomic sequencing analysis in the San Francisco Estuary, USA

“…have occurred in the SFE during the summer since 1999 [ 5 – 6 ]. Microcystis and other harmful cyanobacteria can degrade water quality by producing cyanotoxins or other toxic compounds [ 7 – 9 ]. Laboratory experiments have demonstrated that Microcystis directly or indirectly affect the health (e.g., growth) and survival of embryo to sub-adult fishes [ 10 – 11 ].…”

Multiple Stressors at the Land-Sea Interface: Cyanotoxins at the Land-Sea Interface in the Southern California Bight

“…Humans may also encounter these chemicals by consuming contaminated finfish and shellfish, and via agricultural products irrigated with toxin-laden water [13,14,15,16]. Various cyanotoxins are also consequential to domestic animals, livestock, and wildlife, sometimes resulting in significant mortality events [15,17]. The best-studied and arguably most prevalent of these compounds are the cyclic heptapeptide microcystins, followed by nodularins [18,19,20].…”

Biological and Chemical Investigations of Water Quality and Contamination Study After a Suspicious Algal Bloom in a Coastal Lagoon, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

“…MCs may also bio-accumulate in food chain and hence humans could be exposed to trace levels via the ingestion of contaminated food as well (Larson et al, 2014;Greer et al, 2018). Mortality cases of animals such as dogs, cows, and birds were linked to the consumption of water contaminated with such toxins (Hilborn and Beasley, 2015.;Backer and Miller, 2016). Symptoms of human exposure to MCs include skin rashes, ear and eye irritation, asthma, allergic reactions, sporadic dry cough, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, pneumonia.…”