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Saxitoxins, the etiological agent of paralytic shellfish poisoning, are synthesized by dinoflagellates and cyanobacteria. Several reports indicate that bacteria are capable of saxitoxin synthesis. Two bacterial strains were isolated from saxitoxin-producing dinoflagellates, Alexandrium tamarense and A. lusitanicum (=Alexandrium minutum), and grown under a variety of culture conditions including those previously reported to induce saxitoxin synthesis in bacteria. Five fluorescent compounds were accumulated by the bacteria that had HPLC-FLD retention times similar to a reference standard of GTX(4), one of the saxitoxin congeners. However, we were unable to detect GTX(1), the epimeric partner of GTX(4), in the bacterial samples. The GTX(4) standard was hydrolyzed by NaOH/heat treatment but four of the bacterial compounds were stable. Unlike GTX(4), none of the five bacterial compounds were detectable by HPLC-FLD following electrochemical oxidation. The fluorescence emission spectrum of each of the five bacterial compounds was unique and readily discernable from the spectrum of GTX(4). None of the samples containing the putative GTX(4) toxin yielded positive results when analyzed by a 3H-saxitoxin receptor-binding assay for saxitoxin-like activity. We cannot rule out the possibility that these bacteria produce saxitoxins, however, our data clearly demonstrate that they accumulate at least five different fluorescent compounds that could be easily mistaken for GTX(4). We conclude that these five fluorescent compounds are GTX(4) imposters and that fluorescence scanning and chemical/heat stability should, at a minimum, be incorporated into HPLC-FLD protocols for identification of saxitoxins.

Blooms of domoic acid (DA) synthesizing diatoms (Pseudo-nitzschia spp.) have been associated with the death and injury of hundreds of marine shorebirds and mammals, exposed humans to potentially serious health risks, and threatened to significantly impact coastal fisheries and commerce dependent on marine resources. While indicator organisms are widely utilized to monitor for marine biotoxins like paralytic shellfish poisoning toxins, a reliable intertidal indicator species to monitor DA remains to be identified. Here we evaluate and confirm the utility of the common sand crab (Emerita analoga) as an indicator for DA in comparison with sea mussels (Mytilus californianus). Mussels and sand crabs, collected from natural populations in Santa Cruz, California (April 1999-February 2000), were tested for DA using the HPLC-UV method. Toxin loads in sand crabs ranged from below detectable limits to 13.4 micro g DA g(-1) and coincided with the abundance of DA producing Pseudo-nitzschia species nearshore. Toxin levels in mussels collected during the study period were below HPLC-UV detectable limits. The rise and fall of DA in sand crabs in synchrony with Pseudo-nitzschia abundance, combined with this common intertidal species' accessibility and ease of DA extraction, clearly indicate the utility of sand crabs as a reliable, cost-effective monitoring tool for DA in the nearshore coastal environment.

This report describes the preparative scale production of 11-[3H]-tetrodotoxin (TTX) and its evaluation as a substitute for [3H]-saxitoxin (STX) as the radioligand in a receptor binding assay for paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins. Restrictions on the world-wide distribution of [3H]-STX imposed by the international Chemical Weapons Convention served as the primary impetus for this study. We have incorporated on a preparative scale, a nonexchangeable tritium label into the TTX molecule at a specific activity of 12.90 Ci/mmol and recovered material of high radiochemical purity (98%). The resulting 11-[3H]-TTX was found to exhibit site-specific binding characteristics in the receptor assay ( dissociation constant (K d )=4.77±1.54 nM ; maximum binding (B max )=1.62±0.24 pmol / mg of synaptosomal protein ). The inhibition constant (Ki) for the assay was 1.46±0.28 nM STX equiv. ( n=6 ), with an estimated detection limit of ca. 2–4 ng STX equiv./ml in a sample extract. Moreover, quantitative comparisons indicated that 11-[3H]-TTX could be used interchangeably with [3H]-STX in the receptor assay for determination of PSP toxicity in shellfish and algal extracts without compromising assay performance. We conclude that the 11-[3H]-TTX produced and evaluated herein exhibits physical, chemical and biological characteristics suitable not only for use in the PSP receptor binding assay, but likely for other applications employing [3H]-STX as the radioligand.