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A reinvestigation of saxitoxin production and sxtA in the 'non-toxic' Alexandrium tamarense Group V clade
Citation
Murray, SA and Wiese, M and Neilan, BA and Orr, RJS and de Salas, M and Brett, S and Hallegraeff, G, A reinvestigation of saxitoxin production and sxtA in the 'non-toxic' Alexandrium tamarense Group V clade, Harmful Algae, 18 pp. 96-104. ISSN 1568-9883 (2012) [Refereed Article]
Copyright Statement
Copyright 2012 Elsevier
DOI: doi:10.1016/j.hal.2012.05.001
Abstract
The three Alexandrium species A. tamarense, A. fundyense and A. catenella include strains that can be potent
producers of the neurotoxin saxitoxin (STX) and its analogues, the causative agents of paralytic shellfish
poisoning (PSP). These three species are morphologically highly similar, differing from each other only in
the possession of a ventral pore, or in the ability to form chains. The appropriateness of these morphological
characters for species delimitation has been extensively debated. A distinctive clade of this species
complex, Group V, Tasmanian clade, is found in southern Australia, and occasionally occurs in bloom
proportions. This clade has been considered non-toxic, and no PSP toxins have been found in shellfish
following blooms of this species. In the present study, we report on a Tasmanian strain of A. tamarense,
Group V that produces STX and possesses the gene, sxtA that is putatively involved in STX production. The
toxin profile was determined and is unusual, including a high proportion of GTX5 and a small amount of
STX, and differs from that of co-occurring A. catenella (Group IV). A putative bloom of A. tamarense that
occurred in October 2010, and the subsequent finding of STX in Sydney Rock Oysters (Saccostrea glomerata),
may suggest that some naturally occurring strains of this species could produce STX.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | Alexandrium tamarense, A. catenella, saxitoxin, sxtA, Sydney rock oysters |
| Research Division: | Biological Sciences |
| Research Group: | Plant biology |
| Research Field: | Phycology (incl. marine grasses) |
| Objective Division: | Animal Production and Animal Primary Products |
| Objective Group: | Fisheries - aquaculture |
| Objective Field: | Fisheries - aquaculture not elsewhere classified |
| UTAS Author: | de Salas, M (Dr Miguel de Salas) |
| UTAS Author: | Hallegraeff, G (Professor Gustaaf Hallegraeff) |
| ID Code: | 77886 |
| Year Published: | 2012 |
| Funding Support: | Australian Research Council (LP0776759) |
| Web of Science® Times Cited: | 34 |
| Deposited By: | IMAS Research and Education Centre |
| Deposited On: | 2012-06-03 |
| Last Modified: | 2017-11-06 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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