Seafood is a source of nutrients in human diet but also of environmental contaminants and its consumption could pose a risk to consumers’ health. A survey regarding the exposure to cadmium, lead and mercury through the consumption of bivalve mollusks, gastropods and sea urchins collected on Italian coasts was carried out among central Italian population over a period of three years. A limited number of samples exceeds the threshold set by legislation (6 samples) and the average level of contamination was low in all the species considered. The contribution Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) was higher for cadmium (9.17%) than lead (1.44%) and mercury (0.20%). The benefit-risk evaluation suggests that the bivalve mollusks and sea urchins consumption (Benefit Risk Quotient < 1) could be increased without health detrimental effects.

Plastic marine litter is a critical issue that threatens marine ecosystems. This study investigated microplastics (MPs) contamination in the Italian seas, involving regions significantly affected by pollution from urban, industrial and agricultural sources. The research, conducted in collaborations between 10 different Experimental Zooprophylactic Institutes throughout Italy, analyzed Mytilus galloprovincialis (common mussels) for its filtration capacity and suitability as a bioindicator. Using data from two projects funded by the Italian Ministry of Health, MPs were detected from 7% to 13% of mussel samples, mainly polypropylene and polystyrene fragments and fibers. These findings align with previous studies highlighting the pervasive presence of MPs and their potential risks as mussels are consumed whole, allowing MPs to be ingested. The study underscores the need for standardized detection methods and coordinated policies to mitigate plastic pollution. Public awareness campaigns and improved waste management practices are key to addressing the environmental and health impacts of MPs. Further research on the long-term effects of MPs on marine ecosystems and human health is essential to developing comprehensive mitigation strategies.

The detection of tetrodotoxins (TTXs) in European shellfish led the European Union to request a risk assessment from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). EFSA set a reference limit of 44 µg TTX equivalents kg⁻¹ and called for more data on TTX occurrence, especially in gastropods, which can accumulate in TTXs but remain poorly studied. Recently, preliminary monitoring has revealed the recurrent presence of TTXs in mussels in three areas along the North–Central Adriatic coast of Italy, while research on non-bivalve organisms has not yet been carried out. This study presents a preliminary survey, conducted from January 2023 to March 2025, on the presence of TTXs in gastropods, echinoderms, and arthropods collected from this area. A method in Hydrophilic Interaction Liquid Chromatography coupled with tandem Mass Spectrometry (HILIC-MS/MS) for detecting TTXs in bivalve mollusks was first tested through an international proficiency test, then optimized for the other invertebrates, the object of this study. TTX levels in all gastropods and arthropod samples were undetectable, while traces (~5 µg kg⁻¹) were found in one echinoderm sample (Paracentrotus lividus), marking the first reported occurrence of TTX in this species. Sea urchins are widely consumed in Italy; therefore, this finding is of particular importance from a public health perspective and deserves further investigation. Some gastropod genera or species sampled (e.g., Nassarius, Rapana venosa) have been identified as TTX carriers in other regions; therefore, the negative results obtained in this study may be related to seasonal or geographic variability. These results provide valuable data to EFSA’s call for monitoring emerging risks, particularly as climate change may increase TTX prevalence in European waters as well as worldwide.

Mussel farming is one of the production sectors influenced by the pollutants in seawater, both of chemical and biological origin. Monitoring the impact of the pollutants on mussel farms is a crucial issue in coastal management. A computational approach to mitigate the coast connected to the in-situ monitoring and give the possibility to predict the water quality evolution concerning the coastal hydrodynamics and the known pollution source activities could be a convenient solution. However, although a coupled atmosphere-ocean numerical models workflow is a solution already made operational in diverse and different contexts, the prediction of bacteria contamination in farmed mussels, given the forecast of contaminant concentration, is still an open issue. In this paper, we introduce a novel methodology devoted to predicting the level of contamination given the pollutant concentration from Lagrangian models for transport and diffusion. We present the Artificial Intelligencebased water QUAlity Model (AIQUAM). AIQUAM adopts a computational approach based on High-Performance computer facilities and artificial intelligence to define the dynamics of pollutants in the proximity of mussel farms. We motivate the design and implementation of decision-making tools to support the local authorities in the management activities. Within the framework presented here, the mussel is modeled by the mussel-pollutant interaction time and the bio-accumulation phenomena in filtering organisms (mussels), which can result in hygienic-sanitary emergence deriving from the sale and consumption of potentially polluted products.

It is known that the consumption of edible lamellibranch mollusks (ELMs), undercooked or raw, is a vehicle for the oral transmission of viral and bacterial pathogens. The ELMs most frequently fished/cultivated and consumed in Italy are Mytilus galloprovincialis and Chamelea gallina. The aim of this project was to standardize the cooking conditions of M. galloprovincialis and C. gallina, reproducible in a domestic environment, to obtain food in which the microbiological risk was eliminated but, at the same time, preserved the original organoleptic characteristics. The results showed that for C. gallina and M. galloprovincialis, cooking for 2 minutes after opening all shells, according to a method suitable for home application, is sufficient to eliminate the microbiological risk.