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2012 Autumn | Agriculture and Food Systems, Natural Science & Restoration

Occurrences of Diarrhetic Shellfish Poisoning Call for Alternate Screening Methods

Student(s):

June Songtantaruk

Program or Department(s):

  • Program on the Environment
  • University of Washington

Site supervisor(s):

Bich-Thuy Eberhart

Partner(s):

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Faculty advisor(s):

Russell Herwig School of Aquatic & Fishery Sciences, University of Washington

Diarrhetic shellfish poisoning (DSP) occurs when people consume toxins created by some species of Dinophysis algae. Common sources of human consumption are through shellfish and crustaceans—specifically mussels, clams, oysters or crabs. Ingestion of these toxins can cause gastrointestinal illnesses lasting up to three days; symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, and fever. It is essential to public health to regulate toxicity levels, but the currently certified method of testing, liquid-chromatography mass- spectrometry (LC-MS), is expensive and time-consuming. A protein phosphatase inhibition assay (PP2A), is undergoing review as an alternate procedure and has been found to be a sufficient screening protocol.