Domoic Acid (DA)

Domoic acid (DA), the neurotoxin that causes amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP), is a kainic acid analog, heterocyclic amino acid associated with certain harmful algal blooms. Considerable recent research has been carried out by the Marine Mammal Center and other scientific centers on the association of domoic acid-producing harmful algal blooms and neurological damage in marine mammals of the Pacific Ocean. Domoic acid can bioaccumulate in marine organisms such as shellfish, anchovies, and sardines that feed on the phytoplankton known to produce this toxin. DA can accumulate in high concentrations in the tissues of these plankton feeders when the toxic phytoplankton itself is high in concentration in the surrounding waters. In mammals, including humans, domoic acid acts as a neurotoxin, causing short-term memory loss, brain damage and, in severe cases, death.