Saxitoxin Poisoning in Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) Linked to Scavenging on Mass Mortality of Caribbean Sharpnose Puffer Fish (Canthigaster rostrata-Tetraodontidae)

González Barrientos, Rocío; Hernández-Mora, Gabriela; Alegre, Fernando; Field, Theresa; Flewelling, Leanne; McGrath, Sara; Deeds, Jonathan; Chacón, Yajaira Salazar; Rojas Arrieta, Karla; Calvo Vargas, Emilia; Berrocal Artavia, Karen; Stacy, Brian A.

doi:10.3389/fvets.2019.00466

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Saxitoxin Poisoning in Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) Linked to Scavenging on Mass Mortality of Caribbean Sharpnose Puffer Fish (Canthigaster rostrata-Tetraodontidae)

2019
By González Barrientos, Rocío ; Hernández-Mora, Gabriela ; Alegre, Fernando ; ...
Source: Front Vet Sci. 2019 Dec 17;6:466.

[PDF-275.16 KB]

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Journal Title:

Frontiers in Veterinary Science
Personal Author:

González Barrientos, Rocío ; Hernández-Mora, Gabriela ; Alegre, Fernando ; Field, Theresa ; Flewelling, Leanne ; ... More +

González Barrientos, Rocío ; Hernández-Mora, Gabriela ; Alegre, Fernando ; Field, Theresa ; Flewelling, Leanne ; McGrath, Sara ; Deeds, Jonathan ; Chacón, Yajaira Salazar ; Rojas Arrieta, Karla ; Calvo Vargas, Emilia ; Berrocal Artavia, Karen ; Stacy, Brian A. Less -
NOAA Program & Office:

NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) ; OPR (Office of Protected Resources)

NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) ; OPR (Office of Protected Resources) Less -
Description:

Fish within the family Tetraodontidae are potential sources of both endogenous tetrodotoxins (TTXs) and dietary derived saxitoxins (STXs). Ingestion of fish tissues containing these toxins by other vertebrates can lead to severe illness and death. The Caribbean sharpnose puffer (Canthigaster rostrata) is a widespread tetraodontid species within the western Atlantic. Mass settlement of juveniles into foraging habitats have been associated with large-scale puffer fish mortality events. In 2013, 2014, and 2017, puffer mortality events on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica were also associated with strandings of green turtles (Chelonia mydas) found to have fed on C. rostrata. Stranded sea turtles were found dead without apparent cause or alive with severe neurological signs that resolved during short periods of captivity. Puffer fish and turtle organ samples were analyzed for both TTXs and STXs. Concentrations of TTXs were extremely low in the fish (0.5-0.7 μg/g) and undetectable in turtle stomach contents. However, concentrations of STXs in whole fish (16.6-47.5 μg STX-eq/g) exceeded the 0.8 μg STX-eq/g human seafood safety threshold for STXs by orders of magnitude. Saxitoxins were also detected in samples of stomach contents (ingested fish), brain, lung, kidney, and serum from three affected turtles. Study results indicate that saxitoxicosis resulting from opportunistic foraging on C. rostrata during fish mortality events may be a significant factor in episodic stranding of green sea turtles in this region.
Keywords:

[+]

Green Turtle Mortality Puffers (Fish) Saxitoxin
Source:

Front Vet Sci. 2019 Dec 17;6:466.
DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2019.00466
Pubmed ID:

31921922
Pubmed Central ID:

PMC6928104
Document Type:

Journal Article
Rights Information:

CC BY
Compliance:

PMC
Main Document Checksum:

[+]

urn:sha256:7442194b1efcb79ab25e865566856051dda1ea9078a3bd27dbcbb62e22368788
Download URL:

https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/27504/noaa_27504_DS1.pdf
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Saxitoxin Poisoning in Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) Linked to Scavenging on Mass Mortality of Caribbean Sharpnose Puffer Fish (Canthigaster rostrata-Tetraodontidae)

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