New Insights into the Occurrence and Toxin Profile of Ciguatoxins in Selvagens Islands (Madeira, Portugal)
Pedro Reis Costa,
Pablo Estevez,
David Castro,
Lucía Soliño,
Neide Gouveia,
Carolina Santos,
Susana Margarida Rodrigues,
José Manuel Leao,
Ana Gago-Martínez
Affiliations
Pedro Reis Costa
IPMA—Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere, Av. Brasília, 1449-006 Lisbon, Portugal
Pablo Estevez
Faculty of Chemistry, Department of Analytical and Food Chemistry, University of Vigo, Campus Universitario de Vigo, 36310 Vigo, Spain
David Castro
Faculty of Chemistry, Department of Analytical and Food Chemistry, University of Vigo, Campus Universitario de Vigo, 36310 Vigo, Spain
Lucía Soliño
IPMA—Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere, Av. Brasília, 1449-006 Lisbon, Portugal
Neide Gouveia
Regional Fisheries Management—Madeira Government, DSI-DRP, Estrada da Pontinha 9004-562 Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
Carolina Santos
Instituto das Florestas e Conservação da Natureza, IP-RAM, Secretaria Regional do Ambiente e Recursos Naturais, Regional Government of Madeira, IFCN IP-RAM, Quinta Vila Passos—Rua Alferes Veiga Pestana 15, 9054-505 Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
Susana Margarida Rodrigues
IPMA—Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere, Av. Brasília, 1449-006 Lisbon, Portugal
José Manuel Leao
Faculty of Chemistry, Department of Analytical and Food Chemistry, University of Vigo, Campus Universitario de Vigo, 36310 Vigo, Spain
Ana Gago-Martínez
Faculty of Chemistry, Department of Analytical and Food Chemistry, University of Vigo, Campus Universitario de Vigo, 36310 Vigo, Spain
Ciguatoxins (CTXs), endemic from tropical and subtropical regions of the Pacific and Indian Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, have caused several human poisonings during the last decade in Europe. Ciguatera fish poisonings (CFP) in Madeira and Canary Islands appear to be particularly related with consumption of fish caught close to Selvagens Islands, a Portuguese natural reserve composed of three small islands that harbor high fish biomass. In this study, fish specimens considered as potential vectors of CTXs were caught in Madeira and Selvagens archipelagos for toxins determination via sensitive liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry detection (LC⁻MS/MS). CTXs were found in most of the fish samples from Selvagens and none from Madeira. Caribbean ciguatoxin-1 (C-CTX1) was the only toxin congener determined, reaching the highest value of 0.25 µg C-CTX1 kg−1 in a 4.6 kg island grouper (Mycteroperca fusca). This study indicates that a diversity of fish from different trophic levels contains CTXs, Selvagens appear to be one of the most favorable locations for CTXs food web transfer and finally, this study highlights the need of further research based on intensive environmental and biological sampling on these remote islands.
