Abstract
Laboratory experiments were designed to study the toxin content and profile of the Alexandrium catenella strain ACT03 (isolated from Thau Lagoon, French Mediterranean) in response to abiotic environmental factors under nutrient-replete conditions. This dinoflagellate can produce various paralytic shellfish toxins with concentrations ranging from 2.9 to 50.3 fmol/cell. The toxin profile was characterized by carbamate toxins (GTX3, GTX4 and GTX5) and N-sulfocarbamoyl toxins (C1, C2, C3 and C4). C2 dominated at 12–18 °C, but only for salinities ranging from 10 to 25 psu, whereas GTX5 became dominant at temperatures ranging from 21 to 30 °C at almost all salinities. There was no significant variation in the cellular toxin amount from 18 °C to 27 °C for salinities ranging between 30 and 40 psu. At salinities of 10 to 25 psu, the toxin concentrations always remained below 20 fmol/cell. Toxin content was stable for irradiance ranging from 10 to 70 μmol photons/m2/s then slightly increased. Overall, the toxin profile was more stable than the toxin content (fmol/cell), except for temperature and/or salinity values different from those recorded during Alexandrium blooms in Thau Lagoon.
Highlights
Many species in the genus Alexandrium are among the most harmful algal blooms (HAB)organisms [1,2]
Toxin profiles produced by Alexandrium species from different marine systems across many regions of the world are quite diverse [2,28]
The toxin profile of ACT03 cells from a culture harvested in late exponential growth phase included the toxins GTX3, GTX4, GTX5, C1, C2, C3 and C4 (Figure 2)
Summary
Many species in the genus Alexandrium are among the most harmful algal blooms (HAB). organisms [1,2]. Alexandrium blooms occur under a wide range of latitudes in coastal ecosystems that are characterized by different temperature, salinity, and light conditions [2,3]. Blooms of Alexandrium catenella increase in frequency and importance in many marine coastal areas around the world [2] The expansion of this toxic species has been documented in the Mediterranean Sea in the last decade [20] with reports of extensive blooms in several coastal areas [21,22,23,24]. Laboratory experiments were designed to study the cell PST content of an A. catenella strain, ACT03, isolated from Thau Lagoon (Mediterranean Sea) in response to varying abiotic environmental factors. The present study examines for the first time the influence of irradiance and temperature/salinity on the paralytic shellfish toxin content of this organism grown in an artificial seawater medium under nutrient-replete conditions
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