Detection of harmful cyanobacteria and their toxins by both PCR amplification and LC-MS during a bloom event.

Abstract

We briefly report here the occurrence of toxic blooms in the eutrophic reservoir Billings, São Paulo city, Brazil. Water samples were collected in May 2004, during a cyanobacterial bloom. The presence of toxic species was confirmed by using PCR amplifications of a fragment region of genes encoding microcystin synthetase-mcyB. The determination of toxins was performed by liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS). LC-MS analyses of the toxins from the bloom revealed variants of microcystins (MC), such as MC-LR, MC-RR and MC-YR. HPLC-FLD was used to determine the paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) saxitoxin (STX), neosaxitoxin (NEO), gonyautoxins 2 (GTX2) and 3 (GTX3). GTX2, GTX3 and NEO were detected for the first time in a natural sample from Billings reservoir. These results are a contribution to the knowledge of the biogeography of toxic cyanobacteria and their toxins, specifically in São Paulo.

• Authors: Fabyana Maria dos Anjos, Maria do Carmo Bittencourt-Oliveira, Meron Petro Zajac, Susann Hiller, Bernd Christian, Katrin Erler, Bernd Luckas, Ernani Pinto
• Journal: Toxicon : official journal of the International Society on Toxinology (Toxicon) Vol. 48 Issue 3 Pg. 239-45 (Sep 01 2006) ISSN: 0041-0101 [Print] England
• PMID: 16879849 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Bacterial Toxins
• DNA Primers

Topics

• Bacterial Toxins (analysis)
• Base Sequence
• Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid (methods)
• Cyanobacteria (genetics, growth & development, isolation & purification)
• DNA Primers
• Electrophoresis, Agar Gel
• Mass Spectrometry (methods)
• Polymerase Chain Reaction (methods)