TOXIC BENTONIC MICROALGAS ASSOCIATED WITH CIGUATERA AND OTHER INTOXICATIONS DUE TO CONSUMPTION OF AQUATIC ORGANISMOS IN CUBA

Benthic dinoflagellates are the main transmitter vector of various intoxications due to consumption of acuatic organisms.  In Cuba, seven species have been identified associated with ciguatera:  Gambierdiscus toxicus, Prorocentrum lima, P. belizeanum, P. concavum, P. mexicanum, Ostreopsis lenticularis, O. siamensi, mainly due to fish poisoning. The species of fish known to transmit it are recorded in the 'Gaceta Oficial de la República de Cuba Edición Ordinaria, November 28, 1996, number 40, page 641, Resolución No. 457/96 of Ministerio de la Industria Pesquera [Caranx lugubis, Sphoeroides testudineus,  Lagocephalus laevigatus, Diodon hystrix, Sphyraena barracuda, Diadon holacanthes, Ogcocephalus vesperilio, Gynothorax fenebris, Lutjanus cyanopterus, Caranx latus, Serida dumerili, Seriola zonata, Seriola rivioliana, Caranx bartholomaei, Mycteroperca tigris, Mycteroperca veneosa, Mycteroperca bonaci, Rypticus saponace, Chilomycterus atinga] as well as their symptoms and treatment advice to patients.

Shellfish allergy can cause fatal episodes. Our main fishery is Farfantepenaeus notialis but we also farm Litopenaeus (Penaeus) vannamei, the latter with an allergic prevalence reported moderate to high in Latin America. In Cuba, shrimp allergy prevalence is not known. So far, no studies have been directed towards identification of the major and minor allergens reported for other penaeid species, not even for Tropomyosin the most important shrimp allergen, making it necessary to involve health institutions in this research, perform studies on biochemistry, molecular biology, genomics and epigenetics in shrimp and human resources, in order to identify the spectrum of their allergenic components and potential health effects caused by interaction with environmental factors/chemicals.

However, there are mouse bioassay results with extracts of shells and muscle of F. notialis with characteristic manifestations of diarrheal toxins: vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and two died by 36 hours. Also, in ponds of L. vannamei predominate filamentous type cyanobacteria of the genera Anabaena, Oscillatoria, Nostoc, Arthrospira, Spirulina, some of them reported as toxic species, and also cause the dirty leg síndrome, bad taste and smell, which is manifested in different periods of the year, coinciding with poor quality of the water supply. Therefore, it may be good to explore farming the shrimp in floating cages in order to get a good quality product that we can take from farm to plate.