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Brevetoxicosis

Red tides and marine mammal mortalities

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Unexpected brevetoxin vectors may account for deaths long after or remote from an algal bloom.

Abstract

Potent marine neurotoxins known as brevetoxins are produced by the ‘red tide’ dinoflagellate Karenia brevis. They kill large numbers of fish and cause illness in humans who ingest toxic filter-feeding shellfish or inhale toxic aerosols1. The toxins are also suspected of having been involved in events in which many manatees and dolphins died, but this has usually not been verified owing to limited confirmation of toxin exposure, unexplained intoxication mechanisms and complicating pathologies2,3,4. Here we show that fish and seagrass can accumulate high concentrations of brevetoxins and that these have acted as toxin vectors during recent deaths of dolphins and manatees, respectively. Our results challenge claims that the deleterious effects of a brevetoxin on fish (ichthyotoxicity) preclude its accumulation in live fish, and they reveal a new vector mechanism for brevetoxin spread through food webs that poses a threat to upper trophic levels.

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Figure 1: Brevetoxin concentrations in seagrass and fish during mass-mortality events.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, St Petersburg, 33701, Florida, USA

    Leanne J. Flewelling, Jay P. Abbott, Daniel G. Hammond, Elsa M. Haubold, Cynthia A. Heil, Thomas D. Pitchford, Sentiel A. Rommel, Paula S. Scott, Karen A. Steidinger, Earnest W. Truby & Jan H. Landsberg

  2. Center for Marine Science, University of North Carolina, Wilmington, 28409, North Carolina, USA

    Jerome P. Naar, Daniel G. Baden & Henry M. Jacocks

  3. Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, 34236, Florida, USA

    Nélio B. Barros, Michael S. Henry & Richard H. Pierce

  4. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution, Fort Pierce, 34946, Florida, USA

    Gregory D. Bossart

  5. NOAA, NOS, Center for Coastal Environmental Health and Biomolecular Research, Charleston, 29412, South Carolina, USA

    Marie-Yasmine D. Bottein, Tod A. Leighfield & Frances M. Van Dolah

Authors
  1. Leanne J. Flewelling
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  2. Jerome P. Naar
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  3. Jay P. Abbott
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  4. Daniel G. Baden
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  5. Nélio B. Barros
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  6. Gregory D. Bossart
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  7. Marie-Yasmine D. Bottein
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  8. Daniel G. Hammond
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  9. Elsa M. Haubold
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  10. Cynthia A. Heil
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  11. Michael S. Henry
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  12. Henry M. Jacocks
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  13. Tod A. Leighfield
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  14. Richard H. Pierce
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  15. Thomas D. Pitchford
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  16. Sentiel A. Rommel
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  17. Paula S. Scott
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  18. Karen A. Steidinger
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  19. Earnest W. Truby
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  20. Frances M. Van Dolah
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  21. Jan H. Landsberg
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jerome P. Naar.

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Competing interests

The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Flewelling, L., Naar, J., Abbott, J. et al. Red tides and marine mammal mortalities. Nature 435, 755–756 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature435755a

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