Investigation on the presence of domoic acid in Greek shellfish

In the framework of the national monitoring program for marine biotoxins in bivalve molluscs for 2002 and 2003, a total of 862 samples were examined to investigate the presence of domoic acid (DA). Samples mainly consisted of mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) and venus clams (Venus verucosa) from various Greek harvesting areas. In 2002, 83% of all samples examined contained less that 1 μg DA/g, while in 2003 this percentage was 95%. In both years, DA was only detected in springtime without any sample exceeding the regulatory level. In 2002, the highest value was 14.0 μg/g in mussels, while in 2003 these were 4.2 μg/g in mussels and 5.6 μg/g in venus clams. This is the first report regarding the presence of ASP toxins in Greek shellfish.