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Authors: S. Pappou1,4, S. Metai1, S. Papadaki1, E. Mandalakis2, V. Vassilatou3, M. Krokida1
1Laboratory of Process Analysis and Design, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Zografou Campus, GR-15700, Athens, Greece
2Institute of Marine Biology, Biotechnology and Aquaculture, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (IMBBC-HCMR), Gournes Pediados, Heraklion Crete, Greece
3The NuCLab, Athens, Greece
4Department of Marine Sciences, University of the Aegean, Mytilene 81100, Lesvos, Greece
Keywords: Eastern Mediterranean; Lagocephalus sceleratus; Pterois Miles; Fistularia Commersonii; Bioactive compounds; Cosmeceutical applications
Corresponding author: M.Krokida, Zografou Campus, GR-15700, Athens, Greece,
Abstract
Ιn the present study, the exploitation of marine alien species Lagocephalus sceleratus, Pterois miles and Fistularia commersonii was examined through the recovery and valorization of added value bioactive compounds with potential application on cosmetic products, with the aim of contributing to the control of their population and consolidation of Mediterranean basin. In particular, polyunsaturated fatty acids, collagen and naturally occurring fish toxins (i.e. tetradotoxin) were extracted from the flesh, skin, bones and internal organs of the three studied species. The efficient recovery of the pre-mentioned marine derived components was achieved through the optimization of proper protocols and application of state of the art extraction techniques. Moreover, analytical techniques were used in order to fully characterize the produced extracts. Finally, in order to cover the unpleasant odor of fish origin bioactive compounds and to protect them from adverse environmental conditions, their encapsulation in polymeric matrices is necessary. For the encapsulation the innovative electrohydrodynamic process was used and specifically electrospraying.
The pufferfish Lagocephalus sceleratus and lionfish Pterois miles, are two of the most important marine alien species of the Mediterranean basin. L.sceleratus is one of the most toxic species on the planet, as its tissues contain Tetradotoxin (TTX), a neuroparalytic toxin that can cause death if consumed, while lionfish is also venomous and causes a wide range of symptoms when its venom is injected through the hard thorns of its fins. Both species have rapidly developed large populations in the Eastern Mediterranean basin, while showing increasing signs of spread in the Central and Western part, causing a wide range of socioeconomic and environmental impacts. Finding innovative methods for their economic exploitation is a basic condition in order to create incentives for their targeted fishing and to achieve the limitation of their populations. A study was conducted on the isolation and identification techniques of toxins from both species. In the context of the utilization of the tetradotoxin (TTX) contained in L.sceleratus, an attempt was made to integrate it into products of high added value, such as cosmetics, after the study of its encapsulation in a polymer matrix through the electro-hydrodynamic process of electrospraying.
Authors: Sofia Papadaki1, Pappou Sofia2, Dimou Panagiotis1, Krokida Magdalini2
1Laboratory of Process Analysis and Design, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Str., 15780 Athens, Greece
2Department of Marine Sciences, University of the Aegean, University Hill, Lesvos Island, 81100 Mytilene,
Greece
Keywords: marine alien species, population management, cosmetics
Published by ECSDEV, Via dei Fiori, 34, 00172, Rome, Italy http://ecsdev.org
European Journal of Sustainable Development (2022), 11, 4, 61-71 ISSN: 2239-5938
Doi: 10.14207/ejsd.2022.v11n4p61
Authors: Γεράσιμος Κονδυλάτος 1,* , Georgios Vagenas 2 , Konstantinos Kalaentzis 1 , Dimitris Mavrouleas 1, Alexios Conides 2 , Paraskevi K. Karachle 2 , Maria Corsini-Foka 1 and Dimitris Klaoudatos 3
1 Hydrobiological Station of Rhodes, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, 85131 Rhodes, Greece; (K.K.); (D.M.); (M.C.-F.)
2 Institute of Marine Biological Resources and Inland Waters, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, 19013 Anavissos, Greece; (G.V.); (A.C.); (P.K.K.)
3 Department of Ichthyology and Aquatic Environment (DIAE), School of Agricultural Sciences, University of Thessaly (UTh), 38446 Volos, Greece;
* Correspondence:
Keywords: Levantine Sea; Mediterranean Sea; gill nets; trammel nets; non-indigenous species; invasive fish; small-scale coastal fisheries
Experimental fishing was conducted in three different locations along the coastal marine waters of eastern Rhodes Island, Levantine Sea, Hellas, from April 2021 to March 2022 on a monthly basis. Twelve samplings with gill nets and 12 with trammel nets at each of three selected locations resulted in a total of 72 samplings. The numbers of indigenous and non-indigenous species, as well as their abundances, biomasses and frequencies of occurrence, were recorded. Overall, the samplings yielded 71 species, of which 14 were non-indigenous. The total abundance was 1879 individuals, corresponding to a fish biomass of 433.57 kg. Fistularia commersonii, Sparisoma cretense and Pterois miles exhibited the highest numbers of individuals, whereas three of the invasive alien species in the Hellenic seas, namely, F. commersonii, Lagocephalus sceleratus and P. miles had the highest biomasses. The results exhibited a strong presence of P. miles in the Rhodian fisheries as the dominant invasive species based on the examined indicators (i.e., abundance, catches and frequency of occurrence). Comparisons in regard to the collected biomass between the locations, seasons, species origins and types of fishing gear were performed. All three locations were characterized by a good ecological status based on the relationship between abundance and biomass. The results of this study contribute valuable information on the ongoing changes in small-scale fisheries in the marine waters of Rhodes Island, which is one of the Eastern Mediterranean regions most affected by biological invasions.
The findings of the crabs Arcania brevifrons and Macrophthalmus (Macrophthalmus) indicus, native to the Indo-West Pacific Ocean and Red Sea, and to the Indian Ocean and Red Sea, respectively, in 2021 are described from Rhodes Island, Greece. This first record of the leucosiid A. brevifrons in Hellenic waters and the Aegean Sea documents the westward expansion of its Mediterranean distribution. Two individuals of the introduced macrophthalmid M. (M.) indicus were found in the stomachs of silver-cheeked toadfish (Lagocephalus sceleratus), a fish species that itself is invasive. For both species, DNA barcoding was performed using the standard mitochondrial marker cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI). While the identification of A. brevifrons was genetically confirmed, M. (M.) indicus individuals were morphologically identified. There were no M. (M.) indicus genetic samples available in the nucleotide database of GenBank, hindering the ability to genetically confirm species identification. However, M. (M.) indicus had previously been detected 12 years ago in the same area.
Authors: Γεράσιμος Κονδυλάτος 1,*, Dimitrios Mavrouleas1, Eirini Gratsia2, Panagiotis Kasapidis 2, Maria Corsini-Foka 1 and Dimitris Klaoudatos 3
1 Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Hydrobiological Station of Rhodes. Cos Street, 85131 Rhodes, Greece
2 Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Marine Biology, Biotechnology and Aquaculture. P.O. Box 2214, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
3 University of Thessaly (UTh), School of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Ichthyology and Aquatic Environment (DIAE) Greece. Fytokou Street, 38 446, Volos, Greece
* Corresponding author: E-mail:
Keywords: non-indigenous species (NIS), Brachyura, Mediterranean Sea, DNA barcoding, crab, Greece
Doi: 10.3391/bir.2023.12.1.19
Authors: Thekla I. Anastasiou 1,2, Eirini Kagiampaki 1, Gerasimos Kondylatos 3, Anastasios Tselepides 2, Panagiota Peristeraki 4 and Manolis Mandalakis 1,*
1 Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR), Institute of Marine Biology, Biotechnology and Aquaculture, 71500 Heraklion, Greece
2 Department of Biology, University of Crete, 70013 Heraklion, Greece
3 Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR), Hydrobiological Station of Rhodes, 85131 Rhodes, Greece
4 Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR), Institute of Marine Biological Resources and Inland Waters, 71500 Heraklion, Greece
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Keywords: biotoxins; Lagocephalus sceleratus; silver-cheeked toadfish; Lessepsian species; pufferfish toxicity; steroid hormones; Eastern Mediterranean
Given the dramatic increase in the L. sceleratus population in the southeastern Aegean Sea, there is growing interest in assessing the toxicity of this pufferfish and the factors controlling its tetrodotoxin (TTX) content. In the present study, liver, gonads, muscle and skin of 37 L. sceleratus specimens collected during May and June 2021 from the island of Rhodes, Greece, were subjected to multi-analyte profiling using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in order to quantitate TTX and evaluate whether this biotoxin interrelates with hormones. TTX and its analogues 4-epiTTX, 11-deoxyTTX, 11-norTTX-6-ol, 4,9-anhydroTTX and 5,11/6,11-dideoxyTTX were detected in all tissue types. Liver and gonads were the most toxic tissues, with the highest TTX concentrations being observed in the ovaries of female specimens. Only 22% of the analyzed muscle samples were non-toxic according to the Japanese toxicity threshold (2.2 μg TTX eq g−1), confirming the high poisoning risk from the inadvertent consumption of this species. Four steroid hormones (i.e., cortisol, testosterone, androstenedione and β-estradiol) and the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) were detected in the gonads. Androstenedione dominated in female specimens, while GnRH was more abundant in males. A positive correlation of TTX and its analogues with β-estradiol was observed. However, a model incorporating sex rather than β-estradiol as the independent variable proven to be more efficient in predicting TTX concentration, implying that other sex-related characteristics are more important than specific hormone-regulated processes.
The first record of the tropical green seaweed Halimeda incrassata (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea is presented, based on several thalli found in the stomach of a silver-cheeked toadfish (Lagocephalus sceleratus), collected off Plimmiri beach, Rhodes, Greece. Species identification was based on morphological and molecular identification using the tufA gene as a molecular marker. The finding comes 10 years after a report on the species in Mallorca (Western Mediterranean Sea), where H. incrassata has spread rapidly. The pathway of its introduction in the Eastern basin is unknown, although shipping or the aquarium trade could be involved in this new introduction. Further studies are necessary for visual documentation of the infested areas around Rhodes and assessment of its possible spread in the following years.
Authors: Gerasimos KONDYLATOS1, Konstantinos KALAENTZIS1, Eirini GRATSIA2, Dimitrios MAVROULEAS1, Panagiotis KASAPIDIS2, Konstantinos TSIAMIS3 and Dimitris KLAOUDATOS4
1 Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Hydrobiological Station of Rhodes, Cos Street, 85131 Rhodes, Greece
2 Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Marine Biology, Biotechnology and Aquaculture. P.O. Box 2214, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
3 Karaiskaki 16 Voula, Athens, 16673, Greece
4 University of Thessaly (UTh), School of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Ichthyology and Aquatic Environment (DIAE), Fytokou Street, 38446, Volos, Greece
Corresponding author: Gerasimos KONDYLATOS;
Contributing Editor: Sotiris ORFANIDIS
Keywords: Non-Indigenous Species (NIS); Chlorophyta; Levantine; DNA barcoding
Doi: http://doi.org/10.12681/mms.35435
Ερευνητικό Πρόγραμμα
ExplIAS: Σχεδιασμός και πιλοτική μέθοδος εμπορικής εκμετάλλευσης θαλάσσιων ξενικών ειδών για τη συμβολή στον έλεγχο του πληθυσμού τους.
Με τη συγχρηματοδότηση Ελλάδας και Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης. Κωδικός MIS (5049912)
