Book Description:
Marine and freshwater biotoxins are a well-known problem in food safety, mainly for filter-feeding mollusks and for freshwater aquaculture. This is a challenging matter since, in recent years, toxic algal blooms seems to grow in frequency and duration, leading to longer closure of harvesting areas, disruption in trade, mortality in farmed fish and a growing concern in producers, consumers and health authorities. Unfortunately, in recent years toxins from far latitudes are emerging, leading to new human health problems. Research and exhaustive knowledge of a problem makes it easier to draw a scenario where the best management strategies are gathered. This book combines information related to food-borne illness associated with marine or freshwater biotoxins, the anthropogenic and environmental factors that cause the appearance of toxic episodes and all available analytical procedures for phycotoxins detection. (Imprint: Nova)

Table of Contents:
Preface

Contributor List

Chapter 1. Introduction to Natural Seafood and Freshwater Toxins: Geographic Distribution and Food-Borne Illness
(Vitor Vasconcelos)pp.1-18

Chapter 2. Toxic Harmful Algal Blooms: Natural and Anthropogenic Causes
(Larry E. Brand)pp.19-52

Chapter 3. Harmful Algae Blooms and Food Safety: Physiological and Environmental Factors Affecting Toxin Production and Their Accumulation in Shellfish
(Beatriz Reguera, Francisco Rodríguez and Juan Blanco)pp.53-90

Chapter 4. Solid-Phase Adsorption Passive Sampling: Review of a Monitoring Tool Tracking in Situ Marine and Freshwater toxins
(Jean-Pierre Lacaze)pp.91-114

Chapter 5. Phycotoxins Biotransformations, Shellfish Detoxification and Industrial Application
(Alberto Otero, María-José Chapela, Miroslava Atanassova and Ana G. Cabado)pp.115-148

Chapter 6. New Knowledge of Phycotoxins Toxicology and Consequences on European Legislation
(M. Carmen Louzao, Jorge Lago, Martiña Ferreira, and Amparo Alfonso)pp.149-202

Chapter 7. Biological Methods for Detecting Phycotoxins: Bioassays and in vitro Assays
(Luis M. Botana, Mercedes R. Vieytes, Ana M. Botana, Carmen Vale and Natalia Vilarino) pp.203-214

Chapter 8. Chemical Methods for Detecting Phycotoxins: LC and LC/MS/MS
(Pilar Riobó, Elena López and José María Franco)pp.215-266

Chapter 9. Immunological Methods for Detection of Toxic Algae and Phycotoxins: Immunofluorescence, ELISAs, and Other Innovative Techniques
(África González-Fernández, Mª Elina Garet Fernández, Hans Kleivdal, Christopher T. Elliott and Katrina Campbell)pp.267-304

Chapter 10. Shellfish Toxin Monitoring System in Japan and Some Asian Countries
(Toshiyuki Suzuki and Ryuichi Watanabe)pp.305-314

Chapter 11. Biotoxin Control Programmes in North, Central, and South American Countries
(Stacey L. DeGrasse and Karen Martinez-Diaz)pp.315-346

Chapter 12. Phytoplankton and Biotoxin Monitoring Programmes for the Safe Exploitation of Shellfish in Europe
(Philipp Hess)pp.347-378

List Contributors pp.379-382

Index pp.383-403