Source: The Examiner
Raw or undercooked fish used for sushi, sashimi and related foods have always carried some risk for parasites like Anisakis, Pseudoterranova, Contracaecum and Hysterothylacium.
Historically, examination of the fish for these parasitic larvae includes visual examination, transillumination and digestion by artificial gastric juice. But these methods do not allow users to analyse very large species, or be applied to processed products.
Now a team of researchers in Spain at the Area of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology of the National Association of Manufacturers of Canned Fish and Shellfish (ANFACO-CECOPESCA) developed a fast and efficient molecular method to detect the parasite Anisakis in all fisheries resources according to a study in the journal Food Control.
According to Montserrat Espiñeira, co-author of the paper, the method is highly specific and sensitive for the above parasites.
The larvae of Anisakis are found in the muscle and viscera of a number of fish; cod, hake, mackerel, sardines, anchovies, salmon, herring, tuna, whiting, turbot, halibut and haddock plus squid. A number of these fish are used in the preparation of raw sushi and sashimi.
Human infection with anisakiasis can be a painful, gastrointestinal disease with the pain resembling appendicitis.