Microcystin in Cyanobacterial Blooms in a Chilean Lake

• Published in: Systematic and applied microbiology Vol. 22; no. 2; pp. 169 - 173
• Main Authors: Campos, Victoriano, Cantarero, Sergio, Urrutia, Homero, Heinze, Rita, Wirsing, Birgit, Neumann, Uwe, Weckesser, Jürgen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Jena Elsevier GmbH 01.05.1999; Elsevier
• Subjects: Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Animals; Bacterial Toxins - analysis; Bacteriology; Biological and medical sciences; Biological Assay; bloom; Cells, Cultured; Chile; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; contaminants; cyanobacteria; Cyanobacteria - chemistry; cyclic peptides; Eutrophication; Fresh Water; Freshwater; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; hepatotoxicity; hepatotoxins; lake rocuant; lakes; Microbial ecology; Microbiology; microcystin; Microcystins; Microcystis; Pathogenicity, virulence, toxins, bacteriocins, pyrogens, host-bacteria relations, miscellaneous strains; Peptides, Cyclic - analysis; Rats; toxicity; Various environments (extraatmospheric space, air, water); Water Microbiology; Chile; South America; America; RP-HPLC; PP-1; bloom; hepatotoxicity; cyanobacteria; MCYST-RR; Chile; MCYST-LR; PDA; Microcystis; TFA; microcystin; Freshwater environment; Toxin; Cyanobacteria; Bloom; Lakes; Bacteria; Detection; Quantitative analysis
• ISSN: 0723-2020; 1618-0984
• DOI: 10.1016/S0723-2020(99)80062-9

Cyanobacterial blooms dominated by Microcystis sp. occurred in lake Rocuant (“marisma”, near Concepción/ Chile) in February 1995 and 1996. In the bloom samples collected in both years the hepatotoxin microcystin was detected by RP-HPLC in both samples and in the sample of 1995 also by a toxicity assay using primary rat hepatocytes. In the bloom of 1995, the microcystin content of the dry bloom biomass was determined to be 130 μg/g on the basis of the RP-HPLC peak area and 800 μg/g on the basis of the rat hepatotoxicity assay, respectively. In the bloom of 1996, RP-HPLC analysis revealed a microcystin content of 8.13 μg/g bloom material dry weight. In this year no hepatotoxicity was measured using a concentration range up to 0.8 mg (d. w.) of bloom material per ml in the rat hepatotoxicity assay. This is the first report on the detection of microcystins in Chilean water bodies.