The
emergence of marine and freshwater
toxins in geographical areas where
they have never been reported before
is a concern due to the considerable
impact on (sea)food contamination, and
consequently, on public health.
Several groups of marine biotoxins, in
particular tetrodotoxins, ciguatoxins,
and palytoxins, are included among the
relevant marine biotoxins that have
recently emerged in several coastal
areas. A similar situation has been
observed in freshwater, where
cyanobacterial toxins, such as
microcystins, could end up in
unexpected areas such as the estuaries
where shellfish are cultivated.
Climate change and the increased
availability of nutrients have been
considered as the key factors in the
expansion of all of these toxins into
new areas; however, this could also be
due to more intense biological
invasions, more sensitive analytical
methods, or perhaps even an increased
scientific interest in these natural
contaminations. The incidences of
human intoxications due to the
consumption of seafood contaminated
with these toxins have made their
study an important task to accomplish
in order to protect human health. This
Special Issue has a focus on a wide
variety of emerging biotoxin classes
and techniques to identify and
quantify them.
.