Abstract
Brown marine algae of the families Chordariaceae and Nemacystaceae have sporadically caused human intoxications known as mozuku poisoning. In the present study, some of these seaweeds were extracted and tested for toxicith in mice. The fat soluble fractions prepared from Sphaerotrichia divaricata and Cladosiphon okamuranus were found to be toxic. There toxic perooxides have been isolated from the former alga by using mainly chromatographic techniques. The principal toxin, α, α'-dihydroxy diethyl peroxide, has been synthesized to confirm its structure and toxicity. It was suggested that these toxins are most likely responsible for mozuku poisoning. These algae seem to become toxic at a particular stage of their life cycle. It was also demonstrated that the toxins were quite labile in an algal body and were generated only when the body was heated with water. Similar peroxides have been found in the brown alga Analipus japonicus and also in the red alga Gracilariopsis chorda.
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