• European Marine Science
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Microplastics (MPs) are accessible for organisms with active filter feeding strategies, as are many marine molluscs, which live attached or semi-buried in sediments. In the present study, MPs (from 0.02 to 5 mm) concentration, morphology, and composition were determined in consumed mollusc species of the Catalan coast (NW Mediterranean Sea). Microplastic concentrations, morphologic characteristics and composition were studied according to species, catchment zones and depuration condition. Finally, human intake of MPs through molluscs' consumption was determined. >2300 individuals were analysed, being 1460 MPs extracted and their size, and polymeric composition registered. Big oysters and mussels showed the highest MPs concentration by individual, with levels of 22.8 ± 14.4 and 18.6 ± 23.0 MPs/individual, respectively. Mean annual MPs (≥20 μm) consumption for adult population was estimated in 8103 MPs/year, with a 95th percentile of 19,418 MPs/year. It suggests that the consumption of molluscs is an important route of MPs exposure for the Catalan population.

Scope Consumption of meat has been associated with a higher risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D), but if plasma metabolite profiles associated with these foods reflect this relationship is unknown. The objective is to identify a metabolite signature of consumption of total meat (TM), red meat (RM), processed red meat (PRM), and fish and examine if they are associated with T2D risk. Methods and results The discovery population includes 1833 participants from the PREDIMED trial. The internal validation sample includes 1522 participants with available 1-year follow-up metabolomic data. Associations between metabolites and TM, RM, PRM, and fish are evaluated with elastic net regression. Associations between the profiles and incident T2D are estimated using Cox regressions. The profiles included 72 metabolites for TM, 69 for RM, 74 for PRM, and 66 for fish. After adjusting for T2D risk factors, only profiles of TM (Hazard Ratio (HR): 1.25, 95% CI: 1.06-1.49), RM (HR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.07-1.52), and PRM (HR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.07-1.51) are associated with T2D. Conclusions The consumption of TM, its subtypes, and fish is associated with different metabolites, some of which have been previously associated with T2D. Scores based on the identified metabolites for TM, RM, and PRM show a significant association with T2D risk.

Since seafood is a significant source of nutrients with known health benefits, its consumption is promoted as a healthy food choice. However, seafood can also contain potentially hazardous environmental pollutants. In the context of the ECsafeSEAFOOD FP7 project, FishChoice (www.fishchoice.eu) was developed as a communication tool to help to the consumers to take the most appropriate decisions on their seafood consumption habits. FishChoice relies on scientific information that allows calculating, on an individual basis, intakes of nutrients and pollutants derived from seafood consumption. In the framework of the EU-H2020 funded SEAFOODTOMORROW project, an optimized version of the online tool has been released. FishChoice is available in 25 EU languages with a customized list of seafood species per EU country, considering specific (national) consumption habits. The list of nutrients has been extended according to the latest EFSA recommendations, while pollutants data incorporate results from recent studies. The sustainability of seafood consumption has been also implemented, providing recommendations to help preserve the marine environment. Finally, FishChoice is suitable not only for consumers, but also health professionals, schools and academia, as well as the industrial sector and public health providers.

Seafood, one of the most important food commodities consumed worldwide, is considered a high-quality, healthy, and safe food option. However, marine ecosystems are the ultimate destination for a large group of chemicals, including contaminants of emerging concern, and seafood consumption is a major pathway of human exposure. With growing awareness of food safety and food quality, and increased demand for information on the risk of contaminants of emerging concern, there is a need to assess food safety issues related to harmful contaminants in seafood and ensure the safety of marine food resources. In this study, the risks of emerging compounds (endocrine disruptors, brominated flame retardants, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, and toxic elements) in fish and seafood were analyzed according to their PBT (persistence, bioaccumulation, toxicity) properties as well as in terms of their concentration levels in seafood. A hazard index (HI) was estimated for each compound by applying an artificial neural network (ANN) approach known as Self-Organizing-Maps. Subsequently, an integrated risk rank (IRI) was developed considering the values of HI and the concentrations of emerging compounds in seafood species gathered from the scientific literature. Current results identified HHCB, MeHg, NP, AHTN and PBDE209 as the top five highest ranked compounds present in seafood, according to the 50th percentile (mean) of the IRI. However, this ranking slightly changed when taking into account the 99th percentile of the IRI, showing toxic elements, methylmercury and inorganic arsenic, as having the highest risk. The outcome of this study identified the priority contaminants and should help in regulatory decision-making and scientific panels to design screening programs as well as t

Background & aims: it has previously been described that dietary patterns established early in life tracked to late childhood. The aim of the present work was to analyse the association of dietary patterns that tracked from 2 to 8y with cardiometabolic markers at 8y of age.Methods: The 3 identified patterns at 2y (that previous analyses showed to track to age 8y) were: "Core(DP)", loaded for vegetables, fruits, fish, olive oil, etc.; "F&S-DP", loaded by poor-quality fats and sugars; and "Protein(DP)", mainly loaded by animal protein sources. Cardiometabolic markers at 8y were systolic blood pressure (SBP), insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and triglycerides, and BMI z-score. To examine whether the association of diet with the outcomes was the result of a direct effect of diet at either two or 8y, or synergy between them, we used structural equation models.Results: the associations between the patterns and the health outcomes were: Core(DP) was inversely associated with SBP and HOMA-IR; Protein(DP) was directly associated with HOMA-IR and SBP; and adherence to F&S-DP was directly associated with triglycerides and SBP. The associations between the patterns and the health outcomes were independent of BMI and were the result of a direct effect of diet at 2y, an indirect effect of diet at 2y through diet at 8y or a combination between both pathways.Conclusion: dietary patterns acquired in early life, persisting to later childhood, were associated with cardiometabolic markers at school age independently of BMI. (C) 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Although sushi is considered as a healthy food, it can also be a route of exposure to chemical contaminants such as potentially toxic trace elements. In this study, we analysed the concentration of Cd, I, Ni, Pb and total Hg, as well as iAs and MeHg in sushi samples. Iodine levels were higher in samples containing seaweed, while iAs concentrations were greater in rice-containing sushi. In turn, total Hg and MeHg were significantly higher in sushi samples with tuna. Health risks of sushi consumption were assessed for three population groups: children, adolescents and adults. Considering an average intake of 8 sushi pieces for adults and adolescents, and 3 sushi pieces for children, the estimated exposure to MeHg by adolescents exceeded the tolerable daily intake set by EFSA, while MeHg intake by children and adults was below, but close to that threshold. A relatively high daily exposure of Ni and Pb was also found, especially for adolescents. Since this study focused only on the consumption of sushi, the contribution of other food groups to the overall dietary exposure should not be disregarded. It might lead to an exposure to MeHg and other trace elements above the health-based guideline values.

The importance of ciguatoxins (CTXs) in seafood safety and their emerging occurrence in locations far away from tropical areas highlight the need for simple and low-cost methods for the sensitive and rapid detection of these potent marine toxins to protect seafood consumers. Herein, an electrochemical immunosensor for the detection of CTXs is presented. A sandwich configuration is proposed, using magnetic beads (MBs) as immobilization supports for two capture antibodies, with their combination facilitating the detection of CTX1B, CTX3C, 54-deoxyCTX1B, and 51-hydroxyCTX3C. PoIyHRP-streptavidin is used for the detection of the biotinylated detector antibody. Experimental conditions are first optimized using colorimetry, and these conditions are subsequently used for electrochemical detection on electrode arrays. Limits of detection at the pg/mL level are achieved for CTX1B and 5 1-hydroxyCTX3C. The applicability of the immunosensor to the analysis of fish samples is demonstrated, attaining detection of CTX1B at contents as low as 0.01 mu g/kg and providing results in correlation with those obtained using mouse bioassay (MBA) and cell-based assay (CBA), and confirmed by liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-HRMS). This user-friendly bioanalytical tool for the rapid detection of CTXs can be used to mitigate ciguatera risk and contribute to the protection of consumer health.

Background Supplementation with omega-3 (n-3) fatty acid or dietary fish may protect against atherosclerosis, but the potential mechanisms are unclear. Prior studies found modest triglyceride-lowering effects and slight increases in LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol. Limited evidence has examined n-3 effects on more detailed lipoprotein biomarkers. Methods and Results We conducted a study of 26 034 healthy women who reported information on fish and n-3 intake from a 131-item food-frequency questionnaire. We measured plasma lipids, apolipoproteins, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy lipoproteins and examined their associations with dietary intake of fish, total n-3, and the n-3 subtypes (eicosapentaenoic, docosahexaenoic, and α-linolenic acids). Top- versus bottom-quintile intake of fish and n-3 were significantly associated with lower triglyceride and large VLDL (very-low-density lipoprotein) particles. Fish intake, but not total n-3, was positively associated with total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, and larger LDL size, but only α-linolenic acid was associated with lower LDL cholesterol. Total n-3, docosahexaenoic acid, and α-linolenic acid intake were also positively associated with larger HDL (high-density lipoprotein) size and large HDL particles. High eicosapentaenoic acid intake was significantly associated with only a decreased level of VLDL particle concentration and VLDL triglyceride content. The n-3 fatty acids had some similarities but also differed in their associations with prospective cardiovascular disease risk patterns. Conclusions Higher consumption of fish and n-3 fatty acids were associated with multiple measures of lipoproteins that were mostly consistent with cardiovascular prevention, with differences noted for hi

© 2020 Elsevier Ltd We present a model to predict the long-term distribution and concentrations of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) in estuaries comprising multiple intercommunicated sub-embayments. To that end, a mass balance model including rate constants and time-varying water inputs was designed to calculate levels of these compounds in water and sediment for every sub-embayment. Subsequently, outflows and tidal water exchanges were used to interconnect the different regions of the estuary. To calculate plausible risks to population, outputs of the model were used as inputs in a previously designed model to simulate concentrations of PFOA and PFOS in a sport fish species (Cymatogaster aggregata). The performance of the model was evaluated by applying it to the specific case of San Francisco Bay, (California, USA), using 2009 sediment and water sampled concentrations of PFOA and PFOS in North, Central and South regions. Concentrations of these compounds in the Bay displayed exponential decreasing trends, but with different shapes depending on region, compound, and compartment assessed. Nearly stable PFOA concentrations were reached after 50 years, while PFOS needed close to 500 years to stabilize in sediment and fish. Afterwards, concentrations stabilize between 4 and 23 pg/g in sediment, between 0.02 and 44 pg/L in water, and between 7 and 104 pg/g wet weight in fish, depending on compound and region. South Bay had the greatest final concentrations of pollutants, regardless of compartment. Fish consumption is safe for most scenarios, but due to model uncertainty, limitations in monthly intake could be established for North and South Bay catches.