Are TTX circulated among TTX-bearing organisms?

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26660177
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Aquatic life science
• Research Institution: Nihon University
• Principal Investigator: ITOI Shiro 日本大学, 生物資源科学部, 准教授 (30385992)
• Research Collaborator: HAGIYA Morio 日本大学, 生物資源科学部, 研究員 ; TSUNASHIMA Tadasuke 日本大学, 大学院・生物資源科学研究科, 大学院生 ; YAMADA Riko 日本大学, 大学院・生物資源科学研究科, 大学院生 ; UEDA Hiroyuki 日本大学, 大学院・生物資源科学研究科, 大学院生 ; ABE Koko 日本大学, 生物資源科学部, 実習助手 ; KAWANE Mitsuo (財)愛知県水産業振興基金, 栽培漁業部
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: フグ毒 / テトロドトキシン（TTX) / TTXループ / クサフグ / ヒガンフグ / トラフグ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The presence of numerous Takifugu pardalis eggs in the intestinal contents of another pufferfish, T niphobles. The identity of T. pardalis being determined by direct sequencing for mitochondrial DNA. LC-MS/MS analysis revealed that the peak detected in the egg samples corresponded to TTX. Toxification experiments in recirculating aquaria demonstrated that cultured T. rubripes quickly became toxic upon being fed toxic T. rubripes eggs. Additionally, next generation sequencing analysis revealed that the sequence of toxic goby Yongeichthys criniger was detected from juveniles of the pufferfish Chelonodon patoca. These results suggest that T. niphobles and C. patoca ingested the toxic eggs of another pufferfish T. pardalis and toxic goby, respectively, to toxify themselves more efficiently via a TTX loop consisting of TTX-bearing organisms at a higher trophic level in the food web.

Free Research Field

水圏生命科学