Amnesic shellfish poisoning toxins in bivalve molluscs in Ireland

The amount of DA that was present in three species was within EU guideline limits for sale of shellfish (20 μg DA/g); mussels (Mytilus edulis), <1.0 μg DA/g; oysters (Crassostrea edulis), <5.0 μg DA/g and razor clams (Ensis siliqua), <0.3 μg DA/g. However, king scallops (Pecten maximus) posed a significant human health hazard with levels up to 240 μg DA/g total tissues. Most scallop samples (55%) contained DA at levels greater than the regulatory limit. The DA levels in the digestive glands of some samples of scallops were among the highest that have ever been recorded (2820 μg DA/g).