A Deadly Toxin Lurks In Warmer Waters: Algal Bloom Are To Be Blame

Global warming has already taken many effects to life on earth. Warming up of oceans because of global warming seems to elevate algal bloom which produces neurotoxin that is very deadly to other creatures including humans through shellfish.

Morgaine McKibben, a PhD student at University of Oregon, told Popsci that "the shellfish that eat these algae blooms do not seem to be affected by the toxin." However, while algae's direct predictor cannot be affected by the domoic acid, the animals, including humans, who consume them will suffer a great deal from the effects of the neurotoxin.

According to Live Science, the domoic acid, is a neurotoxin produced by the tiny algae called phytoplankton, a photosynthesizing microscopic organism that inhibit the upper sunlit layer of almost all oceans and bodies of fresh water. Domoic acid accumulates in animals, most commonly shellfish, who consumes the algae. People who will ingest it will develop neurological disorder called domoic acid poisoning (DAP) or amnesic shellfish poisoning that involves symptoms like stomach pain, seizures, diarrhea, memory loss, facial numbness and occasionally, death.

United states western coast has been monitoring the elevation of domoic acid levels in their coastlines since 1991. Domoic acid was first identified as a health threat in 1987 when many had been sick from ingesting high levels of domoic acid from seafoods.

McKibben also explains that they wanted to zoom way out and look at a particular coastline for 25 years if they could find any patterns. Using the data from a state-sponsored shellfish safety checks and fishery records from NOAA, McKibben and his team found links between weather cycles that causes ocean to warm and the rising of neurotoxin in shrimps.

"When we have these weather events on the West Coast, we are more likely to have these toxins show up. That may sound simple but it is the first time that the scientists have been able to hand fisheries a concrete indicator of risk." Morgaine McKibben said in her statement. Moreover, she also added that from these data, fisheries will can now forecast the domoic acid level in the coast and may help to keep people safe.

Matthew Hunter, a researcher at the Oregon Department of Fisheries and  Wildlife, also told Live Science that "the biggest takeaway is that the ocean temperatures are changing, and that has a potential for more frequent and more extreme harmful algal blooms that have significant implications not only to fisheries but also to natural resources and to human health as well."