Pufferfish

Pufferfish Latest News

Recently, scientists have confirmed India’s first case of pufferfish poisoning.

About Pufferfish

• Pufferfish belong to the order Tetraodontiformes.
• Other names: They are locally known by names such as toadfish, patkafish, balloonfish and fugu.
• Habitat: Pufferfish are omnivorous and benthic in habitat.
• Distribution: It is primarily found in the Western Ghats and major basins such as the Ganga, Brahmaputra and Mahanadi. 
• Freshwater pufferfish species reported from India are often endemic to specific geographical areas and serve as indicators of healthy river ecosystems.
• They can inflate into a ball shape to evade predators.
• Status in India: Indian waters currently support eight genera and 32 species of pufferfish.
• Conservation Status :IUCN: Vulnerable 

Pufferfish Poisoning

• Some puffer fish carry tetrodotoxin (TTX) which is one of the most potent neurotoxins known in nature.
  • Tetrodotoxin blocks nerve sodium channels and can cause paralysis, respiratory failure and death.
  • TTX consists of an oxygenated 2,4-dioxaadamantane core and a guanidinium group.
  • TTX is heat-stable, water-soluble, and a non-protein quinazoline derivative.
• Evidence suggests that pufferfish do not synthesise the toxin themselves.
• Instead, TTX is believed to originate from symbiotic or ingested bacteria such as Vibrio, Pseudomonas, Aeromonas and Bacillus.

 Source: DTE

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