Deep-Water Fish Are Potential Vectors of Ciguatera Poisoning in the Gambier Islands, French Polynesia
Hélène Taiana Darius,
Taina Revel,
Philippe Cruchet,
Jérôme Viallon,
Clémence Mahana iti Gatti,
Manoëlla Sibat,
Philipp Hess,
Mireille Chinain
Affiliations
Hélène Taiana Darius
Institut Louis Malardé (ILM), Laboratory of Marine Biotoxins, UMR 241-EIO (IFREMER, ILM, IRD, University of French Polynesia), P.O. Box 30, 98713 Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
Taina Revel
Institut Louis Malardé (ILM), Laboratory of Marine Biotoxins, UMR 241-EIO (IFREMER, ILM, IRD, University of French Polynesia), P.O. Box 30, 98713 Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
Philippe Cruchet
Institut Louis Malardé (ILM), Laboratory of Marine Biotoxins, UMR 241-EIO (IFREMER, ILM, IRD, University of French Polynesia), P.O. Box 30, 98713 Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
Jérôme Viallon
Institut Louis Malardé (ILM), Laboratory of Marine Biotoxins, UMR 241-EIO (IFREMER, ILM, IRD, University of French Polynesia), P.O. Box 30, 98713 Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
Clémence Mahana iti Gatti
Institut Louis Malardé (ILM), Laboratory of Marine Biotoxins, UMR 241-EIO (IFREMER, ILM, IRD, University of French Polynesia), P.O. Box 30, 98713 Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
Manoëlla Sibat
Ifremer, DYNECO, Laboratoire Phycotoxines, F-44000 Nantes, France
Philipp Hess
Ifremer, DYNECO, Laboratoire Phycotoxines, F-44000 Nantes, France
Mireille Chinain
Institut Louis Malardé (ILM), Laboratory of Marine Biotoxins, UMR 241-EIO (IFREMER, ILM, IRD, University of French Polynesia), P.O. Box 30, 98713 Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
Ciguatera poisoning (CP) cases linked to the consumption of deep-water fish occurred in 2003 in the Gambier Islands (French Polynesia). In 2004, on the request of two local fishermen, the presence of ciguatoxins (CTXs) was examined in part of their fish catches, i.e., 22 specimens representing five deep-water fish species. Using the radioactive receptor binding assay (rRBA) and mouse bioassay (MBA), significant CTX levels were detected in seven deep-water specimens in Lutjanidae, Serranidae, and Bramidae families. Following additional purification steps on the remaining liposoluble fractions for 13 of these samples (kept at −20 °C), these latter were reanalyzed in 2018 with improved protocols of the neuroblastoma cell-based assay (CBA-N2a) and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS). Using the CBA-N2a, the highest CTX-like content found in a specimen of Eumegistus illustris (Bramidae) was 2.94 ± 0.27 µg CTX1B eq. kg−1. Its toxin profile consisted of 52-epi-54-deoxyCTX1B, CTX1B, and 54-deoxyCTX1B, as assessed by LC–MS/MS. This is the first study demonstrating that deep-water fish are potential ciguatera vectors and highlighting the importance of a systematic monitoring of CTXs in all exploited fish species, especially in ciguatera hotspots, including deep-water fish, which constitute a significant portion of the commercial deep-sea fisheries in many Asian–Pacific countries.
