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Research on Toxic Substances in Food of Marine Origin
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Research on Toxic Substances in Food of Marine Origin

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Foods of Marine Origin".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 September 2023) | Viewed by 16313

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Ningbo Liao

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Food Science and Engineering, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China
Interests: marine food; food safety; toxic substances; foodborne pathogens; food science and technology; functional foods; gut microbiome

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue of Foods, entitled “Toxic Substances in Food of Marine Origin”, aims to highlight the most recent reports on all aspects of marine toxins. Experts from the fields of aquatic sciences, food microbiology, agronomy, toxicology, analytical chemistry, and molecular biology are invited to contribute their findings in the form of full research articles, short communications, or focused reviews to increase existing knowledge on the wide-ranging and complex topic of marine toxins.

Knowledge that the consumption of a variety of marine foods is associated with human disease has been recognized in recent years. These diseases result from the ingestion of marine life which has accumulated toxins of bacterial or algal origin. Some of the better-known marine food toxins include persistent chlorinated hydrocarbons, toxic metals, radioactive contaminants, scombroid, paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), ciguatera, pufferfish (tetrodotoxin), cephalopod, neurotoxic shellfish poisoning (NSP), diarrheic shellfish poisoning (DSP) and phytoplankton, pathogenic bacteria and noroviruses. The toxic substances consist of more or less complex molecules with various origins that can accumulate in the tissues of marine products at each stage of aquatic production.

Therefore, it is essential to show the state of the art and directions for growth with respect to innovative strategies aiming to prevent toxic substances contamination at each stage of aquatic production. For example, some new marine toxin analysis technologies and the potential risk of exposure to chemical contaminants contained in marine foods should be taken into consideration in the assessment of the health quality of these foods.  Other topics of interest include the use of novel methods for the detection of some toxic substances in food of marine origin, as well as the use of natural bioactive compounds to increase food safety during all stages of production, from the field to consumers.

Dr. Ningbo Liao
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • toxic substances
  • marine food
  • food safety
  • aquatic product processing
  • foodborne pathogens
  • natural bioactive compounds
  • risk assessment

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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10 pages, 994 KiB  
Article
Effects of Age, Fulton’s Condition Index (K) and Muscle Fat on Total Mercury Content in Raw, Pre-Canning and Canned Samples of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus thynnus)
by Pierluigi Piras, Nicolò Pietro Paolo Macciotta, Domenico Meloni, Andrea Sanna, Maurizio Cossu, Severyn Salis and Giannina Chessa
Foods 2023, 12(14), 2686; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12142686 - 12 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1724
Abstract
A total of 30 samples of Atlantic bluefin tuna were analysed for total mercury concentration. Relationships between total mercury content and age, Fulton’s condition index (K) and fat content were statistically evaluated. The effect of muscle status (raw, pre-canning, canned) on mercury content [...] Read more.
A total of 30 samples of Atlantic bluefin tuna were analysed for total mercury concentration. Relationships between total mercury content and age, Fulton’s condition index (K) and fat content were statistically evaluated. The effect of muscle status (raw, pre-canning, canned) on mercury content was also investigated. The average total mercury content was: 1.185 ± 0.662 mg/kg in raw, 1.481 ± 0.893 mg/kg in pre-canning and 1.393 ± 0.882 mg/kg in canned samples, respectively. Canning promotes a statistically significant increase in the concentration of mercury. The weight of fish, K and fat content are useful tools to estimate the mercury accumulation in Atlantic bluefin tuna. The results of the present study represent a contribution to the assessment of the EU mercury levels in Atlantic bluefin tuna. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Toxic Substances in Food of Marine Origin)
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31 pages, 712 KiB  
Article
Bacteria of Zoonotic Interest Identified on Edible Freshwater Fish Imported to Australia
by Michelle Williams, Shokoofeh Shamsi, Thomas Williams and Marta Hernandez-Jover
Foods 2023, 12(6), 1288; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12061288 - 17 Mar 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 4510
Abstract
Previous research has shown that freshwater edible fish imported into Australia are not compliant with Australian importation guidelines and as a result may be high risk for bacterial contamination. In the present study, the outer surface of imported freshwater fish were swabbed, cultured, [...] Read more.
Previous research has shown that freshwater edible fish imported into Australia are not compliant with Australian importation guidelines and as a result may be high risk for bacterial contamination. In the present study, the outer surface of imported freshwater fish were swabbed, cultured, confirmatory tests performed and antimicrobial patterns investigated. Channidae fish (Sp. A/n = 66) were contaminated with zoonotic Salmonella sp./Staphylococcus aureus (n = 1/66) and other bacteria implicated in cases of opportunistic human infection, these being Pseudomonas sp. (including P. mendocina and P. pseudoalcaligenes (n = 34/66)); Micrococcus sp. (n = 32/66); Comamonas testosteroni (n = 27/66) and Rhizobium radiobacter (n = 3/66). Pangasiidae fish (Species B/n = 47) were contaminated with zoonotic Vibrio fluvialis (n = 10/47); Salmonella sp. (n = 6/47) and environmental bacteria Micrococcus sp. (n = 3/47). One sample was resistant to all antimicrobials tested and is considered to be Methicillin Resistant S. aureus. Mud, natural diet, or vegetation identified in Sp. A fish/or packaging were significantly associated with the presence of Pseudomonas spp. The study also showed that visibly clean fish (Sp. B) may harbour zoonotic bacteria and that certain types of bacteria are common to fish groups, preparations, and contaminants. Further investigations are required to support the development of appropriate food safety recommendations in Australia. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Toxic Substances in Food of Marine Origin)
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Review

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24 pages, 418 KiB  
Review
The Status of Marine Mussel Pollution Research in South Africa (2012–2022)
by Deborah Caitlin Firth, Lutz Auerswald, Philip E. Strydom and Louwrens Christiaan Hoffman
Foods 2023, 12(21), 3983; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12213983 - 31 Oct 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2998
Abstract
The growing human population requires more food each year, and seafood products can help meet this demand if clean water resources are available for their growth. Farmed and wild mussels are environmentally friendly seafood with many health benefits to human consumers, but they [...] Read more.
The growing human population requires more food each year, and seafood products can help meet this demand if clean water resources are available for their growth. Farmed and wild mussels are environmentally friendly seafood with many health benefits to human consumers, but they can also pose a health risk if they are harvested from areas where marine anthropogenic pollution is uncontrolled or unmonitored. While the coastline in South Africa has long been assumed to be pristine, a growing number of recent studies are raising contamination concerns. Baseline studies establish a wide range of anthropogenic pollutants to be present in the marine environment, specifically in urbanised or industrialised areas like major cities or harbours. This review summarises how mussels could pose health risks to human consumers and the current research that is being conducted by private researchers and institutions in South Africa. The review emphasises the need for more research in the field and for governmental pollution monitoring data to be released to the public. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Toxic Substances in Food of Marine Origin)
22 pages, 655 KiB  
Review
Food Safety Risks Posed by Heavy Metals and Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) related to Consumption of Sea Cucumbers
by Edel Oddny Elvevoll, David James, Jogeir Toppe, Esther Garrido Gamarro and Ida-Johanne Jensen
Foods 2022, 11(24), 3992; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11243992 - 9 Dec 2022
Cited by 27 | Viewed by 5743
Abstract
The global production of sea cucumbers was 245 thousand tons in 2020. Sea cucumbers are important food items in Asian and Pacific cuisines, the highest proportion being consumed in China as “bêche-de-mer” dried, gutted, boiled and salted body wall. However, consumption of sea [...] Read more.
The global production of sea cucumbers was 245 thousand tons in 2020. Sea cucumbers are important food items in Asian and Pacific cuisines, the highest proportion being consumed in China as “bêche-de-mer” dried, gutted, boiled and salted body wall. However, consumption of sea cucumbers is expanding in China and globally, and the high demand has led to decline in populations of sea cucumbers, due to overexploitation. Aquaculture, together with novel fisheries on new species in new regions is easing the demand. Thus, an assessment of food safety is warranted. A literature search on food hazards was performed. A high proportion of the selected papers concerned heavy metals and metalloid hazards, such as mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and arsenic (As). No specific maximum limits (MLs) have been set for contents of these in sea cucumbers. Thus, the contents were compared with maximum limits set for aquatic animals in general or bivalve molluscs if available. With regard to Hg and Cd levels, none of the samples exceeded limits set by the European Commission or the National Standard of China, while for Pb, samples from highly industrialised areas exceeded the limits. Surprisingly, data on contaminants such as POPs, including dioxins and dl-PCB, PAH and PFAS as well as microbial hazards were scarce. The availability of fresh sea cucumber has increased due to aquaculture. To preserve the original flavour some consumers are reported to prefer to eat raw sea cucumber products, sashimi and sushi, which inevitably causes challenges from the microbial food safety perspective. Altogether, this paper highlights specific needs for knowledge, in particular when harvesting new species of sea cucumbers or in industrialized regions. Systematic monitoring activities, appropriate guidelines and regulations are highly warranted to guide the utilization of sea cucumbers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research on Toxic Substances in Food of Marine Origin)
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