Russian Scientists Detect Poisonous Microalgae In Waters Near Vladivostok For 1st Time

VLADIVOSTOK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 30th September, 2021) Russian scientists have detected for the first time microalgae that emit deadly neuroparalytic poison in the waters of the Amur Bay in the city Vladivostok, Tatyana Orlova, a senior scientist at the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian academy of Sciences, told Sputnik on Thursday.

The Alexandrium microalgae, which is usually found in North America and off the coast of the Atlantic, produce dangerous toxins, causing paralytic shellfish poisoning. It is an example of the so-called invisible killers, the expert said, noting that they are invisible to the naked eye. While they produce vast amounts of beneficial nutrients, they can also produce hazardous metabolites.

"For the first time in 30 years of research, our National Scientific Center of Marine Biology has recorded the maximum permissible concentration of these algae, exceeding the norm 200 times," Orlova said, adding that the species was registered earlier this week during routine monitoring.

With such a concentration of microalgae as in the waters of the Amur Bay, if the mollusks accumulate toxins in themselves, then it is enough to eat one or two mollusks for a person to die. Therefore, it is necessary now to check how much toxin is in shellfish and whether it exceeds the norms in seafood, the expert added.