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Toxins
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Harmful Algae in a Changing World: Where Did We Come...
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Harmful Algae in a Changing World: Where Did We Come from and Where Are We Going?

A special issue of Toxins (ISSN 2072-6651). This special issue belongs to the section "Marine and Freshwater Toxins".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2025 | Viewed by 3303

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Katia Comte

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle, 75005 Paris, France
Interests: harmful algal blooms; cyanobacteria; photosynthetic protists; cyanotoxins; aquatic ecotoxicology; molecular approaches; ecophysiology; trophic interactions; stress responses
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aquatic environments, including both freshwater and marine ecosystems, are frequently disturbed by the intensification of harmful algae, so called harmful algae bloom (HABs), worldwide. Some species are capable of producing toxic compounds and other bioactive metabolic products which seriously affect food chains and human health. There is a current consensus that the anthropogenic pressure and/or the climatic changes including warming, acidification and hypoxia stressors may act on harmful algae evolution today and in the future. However, the extent to which global changes affect the harmful algae range expansion and increased toxicity is not fully clear and needs further combined investigations.

The Special Issue is open, but not limited, to recent advances on new harmful algae distribution, toxin production, algal response to environmental stresses, impacts on trophic food webs and topics linked to the management and prediction of HABs in all water systems.

All papers, including original research, critical reviews, short communications or challenging questions in the field, are greatly welcomed.

Dr. Katia Comte
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxins is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • HABs
  • freshwater and marine algae
  • trophic interactions
  • toxins
  • emerging pollutants
  • climatic changes
  • eutrophication
  • remediation

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 6558 KiB  
Article
Real-Time Observation of Clickable Cyanotoxin Synthesis in Bloom-Forming Cyanobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa and Planktothrix agardhii
by Rainer Kurmayer and Rubén Morón Asensio
Toxins 2024, 16(12), 526; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins16120526 - 5 Dec 2024
Viewed by 557
Abstract
Recently, the use of click chemistry for localization of chemically modified cyanopeptides has been introduced, i.e., taking advantage of promiscuous adenylation (A) domains in non-ribosomal peptide synthesis (NRPS), allowing for the incorporation of clickable non-natural amino acids (non-AAs) into their peptide products. In [...] Read more.
Recently, the use of click chemistry for localization of chemically modified cyanopeptides has been introduced, i.e., taking advantage of promiscuous adenylation (A) domains in non-ribosomal peptide synthesis (NRPS), allowing for the incorporation of clickable non-natural amino acids (non-AAs) into their peptide products. In this study, time-lapse experiments have been performed using pulsed feeding of three different non-AAs in order to observe the synthesis or decline of azide- or alkyne-modified microcystins (MCs) or anabaenopeptins (APs). The cyanobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa and Planktothrix agardhii were grown under maximum growth rate conditions (r = 0.35–0.6 and 0.2–0.4 (day−1), respectively) in the presence of non-AAs for 12–168 h. The decline of the azide- or alkyne-modified MC or AP was observed via pulse-feeding. In general, the increase in clickable MC/AP in peptide content reached a plateau after 24–48 h and was related to growth rate, i.e., faster-growing cells also produced more clickable MC/AP. Overall, the proportion of clickable MC/AP in the intracellular fraction correlated with the proportion observed in the dissolved fraction. Conversely, the overall linear decrease in clickable MC/AP points to a rather constant decline via dilution by growth instead of a regulated or induced release in the course of the synthesis process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Harmful Algae in a Changing World: Where Did We Come from and Where Are We Going?)
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10 pages, 2813 KiB  
Article
Design of a Duplex-to-Complex Structure-Switching Approach for the Homogeneous Determination of Marine Biotoxins in Water
by Awatef Al-Tabban, Amina Rhouati, Amjad Fataftah, Dana Cialla-May, Jürgen Popp and Mohammed Zourob
Toxins 2024, 16(11), 476; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins16110476 - 4 Nov 2024
Viewed by 863
Abstract
In this report, we describe a fluorescent assay for the detection of six marine toxins in water. The mechanism of detection is based on a duplex-to-complex structure-switching approach. The six aptamers specific to the targeted cyanotoxins were conjugated to a fluorescent dye, carboxyfluorescein [...] Read more.
In this report, we describe a fluorescent assay for the detection of six marine toxins in water. The mechanism of detection is based on a duplex-to-complex structure-switching approach. The six aptamers specific to the targeted cyanotoxins were conjugated to a fluorescent dye, carboxyfluorescein (FAM). In parallel, complementary DNA (cDNA) sequences specific to each aptamer were conjugated to a fluorescence quencher BHQ1. In the absence of the target, an aptamer–cDNA duplex structure is formed, and the fluorescence is quenched. By adding the toxin, the aptamer tends to bind to its target and releases the cDNA. The fluorescence intensity is consequently restored after the formation of the complex aptamer–toxin, where the fluorescence recovery is directly correlated with the analyte concentration. Based on this principle, a highly sensitive detection of the six marine toxins was achieved, with the limits of detection of 0.15, 0.06, 0.075, 0.027, 0.041, and 0.026 nM for microcystin-LR, anatoxin-α, saxitoxin, cylindrospermopsin, okadaic acid, and brevetoxin, respectively. Moreover, each aptameric assay showed a very good selectivity towards the other five marine toxins. Finally, the developed technique was applied for the detection of the six toxins in spiked water samples with excellent recoveries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Harmful Algae in a Changing World: Where Did We Come from and Where Are We Going?)
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20 pages, 4904 KiB  
Article
Community Structure and Toxicity Potential of Cyanobacteria during Summer and Winter in a Temperate-Zone Lake Susceptible to Phytoplankton Blooms
by Łukasz Wejnerowski, Tamara Dulić, Sultana Akter, Arnoldo Font-Nájera, Michał Rybak, Oskar Kamiński, Anna Czerepska, Marcin Krzysztof Dziuba, Tomasz Jurczak, Jussi Meriluoto, Joanna Mankiewicz-Boczek and Mikołaj Kokociński
Toxins 2024, 16(8), 357; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins16080357 - 14 Aug 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1270
Abstract
Cyanobacterial blooms are increasingly common during winters, especially when they are mild. The goal of this study was to determine the summer and winter phytoplankton community structure, cyanotoxin presence, and toxigenicity in a eutrophic lake susceptible to cyanobacterial blooms throughout the year, using [...] Read more.
Cyanobacterial blooms are increasingly common during winters, especially when they are mild. The goal of this study was to determine the summer and winter phytoplankton community structure, cyanotoxin presence, and toxigenicity in a eutrophic lake susceptible to cyanobacterial blooms throughout the year, using classical microscopy, an analysis of toxic cyanometabolites, and an analysis of genes involved in biosynthesis of cyanotoxins. We also assessed whether cyanobacterial diversity in the studied lake has changed compared to what was reported in previous reports conducted several years ago. Moreover, the bloom-forming cyanobacterial strains were isolated from the lake and screened for cyanotoxin presence and toxigenicity. Cyanobacteria were the main component of the phytoplankton community in both sampling times, and, in particular, Oscillatoriales were predominant in both summer (Planktothrix/Limnothrix) and winter (Limnothrix) sampling. Compared to the winter community, the summer community was denser; richer in species; and contained alien and invasive Nostocales, including Sphaerospermopsis aphanizomenoides, Raphidiopsis raciborskii, and Raphidiopsis mediterranea. In both sampling times, the blooms contained toxigenic species with genetic determinants for the production of cylindrospermopsin and microcystins. Toxicological screening revealed the presence of microcystins in the lake in summer but no cyanotoxins in the winter period of sampling. However, several cyanobacterial strains isolated from the lake during winter and summer produced anabaenopeptins and microcystins. This study indicates that summer and winter blooms of cyanobacteria in the temperate zone can differ in biomass, structure, and toxicity, and that the toxic hazards associated with cyanobacterial blooms may potentially exist during winter. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Harmful Algae in a Changing World: Where Did We Come from and Where Are We Going?)
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