Phthalates, Bisphenol A, and Microbiological Investigations in Deep-Sea Shrimp Aristaeomorpha foliacea from Mediterranean Sea: Signs of Marine Anthropological Pollution

TL;DR

This study investigates chemical and microbiological risks in deep-sea shrimp from the Mediterranean Sea due to human pollution.

Contribution

A dual chemical and microbiological analysis approach is applied to assess pollution impacts on shrimp and food safety.

Findings

Phthalates and bisphenol A were detected in shrimp samples from multiple Mediterranean fishing sites.

Microbiological risks were identified, indicating potential threats to food safety from contaminated shrimp.

The study highlights the combined impact of chemical pollutants and microbial contamination in marine organisms.

Abstract

Sea pollution caused by anthropological activities represents a risk both for the organisms that inhabit it and for humans themselves. Great attention is paid to plastic waste because it takes decades to decompose and fragments into microscopic pieces that can be easily dispersed and ingested by marine fauna. Polymeric materials, in general, are rich in plasticizers (phthalates, PAEs; and bisphenol A, BPA), substances recognized as toxic both for aquatic organisms and for humans who could ingest them once contaminated marine organisms were to enter their diet. In this work, effective analytical protocols based on the use of solid phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with chromatography techniques were employed to evaluate the presence of PAEs and BPA in the extracted pulp of shrimps of the commercial species Aristaemorpha foliacea from four different fishing stations in the Mediterranean Sea. In addition to chemical analysis, a comprehensive microbiological characterization was carried out to assess microbiological risk due to shrimps’ consumption. This dual approach provides a more complete evaluation of the impact of human pollution on these crustaceans, revealing both chemical contamination and potential biological disruptions that could pose a danger to food safety.

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