Rapid detection of chemical hazards (toxins, dioxins, and PCBs) in seafood.

Among the various hazards occurring in fish and seafood chemical hazards and in particular toxins (ciguatera, scombroid fish poisoning, paralytic shellfish poisoning, neurotoxic (brevetoxic) shellfish poisoning, puffer fish poisoning, diarrhetic shellfish poisoning) have an important place in food poisoning cases. On the other hand, some of the chemical hazards are often due to the pollution of the environment (heavy metals, dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls, and halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons) and their detection is neither rapid nor facile. As a result there was a great need for developing new rapid and effective methods toward the chemical hazards determination mainly because of their high toxicity. The aim of this review is to provide the information about the new up-to-date detection techniques (Immunological, Chemical and Biochemical, and Molecular assays) in conjunction with detection limits. The latter is made possible by means of inclusion of seven comprehensive and, in most case cases, very extended tables. A reference is also made on the risk characterization of toxins as regards their importance to food contamination or poisoning.