Abstract
Summary: The dinoflagellate Alexandrium minutum and the haptophyte Prymnesium parvum are well known for their toxin production and negative effects in marine coastal environments. A. minutum produces toxins which cause paralytic shellfish poisoning in humans and can affect copepods, shellfish and other marine organisms. Toxins of P. parvum are associated with massive fish mortalities resulting in negative impacts on the marine ecosystem and large economic losses in commercial aquaculture. The aim of this work is to improve our knowledge about the reliability of the use of marine invertebrate bioassays to detect microalgae toxicity, by performing: (i) a 24- to 48-h test with the brine shrimp Artemia franciscana; (ii) a 48-hour embryo-larval toxicity test with the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus; and (iii) a 72-h test with the amphipod Corophium multisetosum. The results indicate that A. franciscana and P. lividus larvae are sensitive to the toxicity of A. minutum and P. parvum. LC50 comparison analysis between the tested organisms reveals that A. franciscana is the most sensitive organism for A. minutum. These findings suggest that the use of different organizational biological level bioassays appears to be a suitable tool for A. minutum and P. parvum toxicity assessment.
Highlights
Over the last few decades, the incidence of toxic phytoplankton blooms has apparently been increasing in coastal waters worldwide (GEOHAB 2012)
The results indicate that A. franciscana and P. lividus larvae are sensitive to the toxicity of A. minutum and P. parvum
Our results have confirmed the good quality of the model organisms
Summary
Over the last few decades, the incidence of toxic phytoplankton blooms has apparently been increasing in coastal waters worldwide (GEOHAB 2012). Toxic blooms cause negative impacts and economic losses in many parts of the world and their consequences and mechanisms depend on the species involved. Several taxonomic groups of microalgae are known as harmful marine species: dinoflagellates, diatoms, raphidophyceans, cyanophytes and haptophytes (Moestrup 1994). Among the genera responsible for harmful algal blooms (HABs), the genus Alexandrium is one of the most important, in terms of severity, diversity and distribution of bloom impacts (Anderson et al 2012). Alexandrium minutum Halim is well known for the production of paralytic shellfish poisoning toxins and its presence can affect copepods, shellfish, and other marine organisms (Zhenxing et al 2006). A. minutum was first described in the Mediterranean Sea forming a red water discoloration in Alexandria Harbour, Egypt (Halim 1960); it has since been reported widely on the Mediterranean and Atlantic Spanish coast (Delgado et al 1990, Franco et al 1994, Frangópulos et al 2000, Figueroa et al 2007, Penna et al 2008 and ICES 2011)
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