The aquatic biotic environment and its biotoxins

Abstract

The aquatic world is renowned for its enchanting beauty. In some cases, however, hidden perils may lurk behind the alluring beauty, and even some mortal dangers. An analysis of the map of the hydrosphere shows that the central hub for potentially harmful aquatic animals is the great area of the Indian and Pacific Oceans, although aquatic animals and vegetables of less aggressive type are present in all the seas. Of the two types of offense and defense mechanisms possessed by many marine fauna, namely physical and chemical, study of the latter has always been a fascinating sector of marine biology, still to some extent veiled in an aura of mystery. Many animal and vegetable species are equipped with biotoxins, organic products that can be poisonous (harmful when eaten) or venomous (harmful when they enter the bloodstream), and have various different actions and variable pathogenic intensities. These biotoxins can be actively produced, or else derive from the aquatic environment for various reasons. In the latter case the animals are carriers of biotoxins. To date, few biotoxins have been isolated, of variable chemical natures, and with a few exceptions, no specific antidotes have yet been discovered.