Paralytic shellfish poisoning

Paralytic shellfish poisoning
The saxitoxin molecule shown in its unionized state

Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) is one of the four recognized syndromes of shellfish poisoning, which share some common features and are primarily associated with bivalve mollusks (such as mussels, clams, oysters and scallops). These shellfish are filter feeders and accumulate neurotoxins, chiefly saxitoxin, produced by microscopic algae, such as dinoflagellates, diatoms, and cyanobacteria.[1] Dinoflagellates of the genus Alexandrium are the most numerous and widespread saxitoxin producers and are responsible for PSP blooms in subarctic, temperate, and tropical locations.[2] The majority of toxic blooms have been caused by the morphospecies Alexandrium catenella, Alexandrium tamarense, Gonyaulax catenella and Alexandrium fundyense,[3] which together comprise the A. tamarense species complex.[4] In Asia, PSP is mostly associated with the occurrence of the species Pyrodinium bahamense.[5]

Some pufferfish, including the chamaeleon puffer, also contain saxitoxin, making their consumption hazardous.[6]

  1. ^ Clark, RF; Williams, SR; Nordt, SP; Manoguerra, AS (1999). "A review of selected seafood poisonings" (PDF). Undersea & Hyperbaric Medicine. 26 (3): 175–84. PMID 10485519. Archived from the original on June 17, 2012.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ Taylor, F. J. R.; Fukuyo, Y.; Larsen, J.; Hallegraeff, G. M. (2003). "Taxonomy of harmful dinoflagellates". In Hallegraeff, G.M.; Anderson, D.M.; Cembella, A.D. (eds.). Manual on Harmful Marine Microalgae. UNESCO. pp. 389–432. ISBN 92-3-103948-2.
  3. ^ Cembella, A. D. (1998). "Ecophysiology and Metabolism of Paralytic Shellfish Toxins in Marine Microalgae". In Anderson, D. M.; Cembella, A. D.; Hallegraeff, G. M. (eds.). Physiological Ecology of Harmful Algal Blooms. NATO ASI. Berlin: Springer. pp. 381–403. ISBN 978-3-662-03584-9.
  4. ^ Balech, Enrique (1985). "The genus Alexandrium or Gonyaulax of the Tamarensis Group". In Anderson, Donald M.; White, Alan W.; Baden, Daniel G. (eds.). Toxic Dinoflagellates. New York: Elsevier. pp. 33–8. ISBN 978-0-444-01030-8.
  5. ^ Azanza, Rhodora V.; Max Taylor, F. J. R. (2001). "Are Pyrodinium Blooms in the Southeast Asian Region Recurring and Spreading? A View at the End of the Millennium". Ambio: A Journal of the Human Environment. 30 (6): 356–64. Bibcode:2001Ambio..30..356A. doi:10.1579/0044-7447-30.6.356. PMID 11757284. S2CID 20837132.
  6. ^ Ngy, Laymithuna; Tada, Kenji; Yu, Chun-Fai; Takatani, Tomohiro; Arakawa, Osamu (2008). "Occurrence of paralytic shellfish toxins in Cambodian Mekong pufferfish Tetraodon turgidus: Selective toxin accumulation in the skin". Toxicon. 51 (2): 280–8. Bibcode:2008Txcn...51..280N. doi:10.1016/j.toxicon.2007.10.002. hdl:10069/22351. PMID 17996918.