Harmful algal biotoxins in the marine environment are a threat to human food safety due to their bioaccumulation in bivalve shellfish. Whilst official control monitoring provides ongoing risk management for regulated toxins in live bivalve molluscs, no routine monitoring system is currently in operation in the UK for other non-regulated toxins. To assess the potential presence of such compounds, a systematic screen of bivalve shellfish was conducted throughout Great Britain.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe common octopus () is a promising candidate for aquaculture diversification, particularly in Europe. As interest in octopus farming grows, animal welfare concerns arise. In bony vertebrates (teleosts and tetrapods), measurements of the levels of corticosterone or cortisol have been successfully used as indicators of stress and welfare.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOne Health is a recognition of the shared environment inhabited by humans, animals and plants, and the impact of their interactions on the health of all organisms. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for a framework of pathogen surveillance in a tractable One Health paradigm to allow timely detection and response to threats to human and animal health. We present case studies centered around the recent global approach to tackle antimicrobial resistance and the current interest in wastewater testing, with the concept of "one sample many analyses" to be further explored as the most appropriate means of initiating this endeavor.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPharmaceuticals are recognised as environmental contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) due to their increasing presence in the aquatic environment, along with high bioactivity linked to their therapeutic use. Therefore, information on environmental levels is urgently required. This study examined the presence of a range of common pharmaceuticals in oysters and mussels intended for human consumption from England and Wales using stable isotope dilution tandem mass spectrometry.
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