Study of paralytic shellfish toxin and tetrodotoxin in horseshoe crabs

Nurulhuda, Hashim (2016) Study of paralytic shellfish toxin and tetrodotoxin in horseshoe crabs. [Final Year Project Report] (Unpublished)

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Abstract

In this study, toxin analysis was assessed for paralytic shellfish toxin (PST) and tetrodotoxin (TTX) in horseshoe crabs at 3 sampling sites, 2 sites in Sarawak (Kuching and Samarahan) and 1 site in Johor (Kuala Sedili). For PST, toxin used for this study were saxitoxin (STX). The objectives for this study were to study and determine the toxin properties in horseshoe crab. There were total of 37 samples for PST and 32 samples for TTX were tested for toxin analysis. Two species of horseshoe crabs were identified as Tachypleus gigas and Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda and the total length, body weight, carapace width, and telson length were measured. For toxin analysis, thin layer chromatography (TLC), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) were performed. TLC analysis for both STX and TTX indicated no toxins presence in the horseshoe crabs. The standard STX is 0.55 and for TTX is 0.35. Average values for STX were 0.49-0.57 and for TTX were 0.45-0.67. PST profile for HPLC indicated no STX detected at peak compared with standard but there were other toxin presence in low concentration. For LC-MS/MS analysis, Kuching samples was non-toxic (1.3 MU/g) and egg samples at Johor was moderately toxic (295.27 MU/g). These findings show that horseshoe crabs at Malaysia are still considered safe for human consumption but further research must be continued.

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