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. 2020 Aug;27(24):30285-30294.
doi: 10.1007/s11356-020-09290-2. Epub 2020 May 26.

Cyanotoxin release from the benthic, mat-forming cyanobacterium Microseira (Lyngbya) wollei in the St. Lawrence River, Canada

Sylvie Poirier-Larabie  1 , Christiane Hudon  1 , Hugo-Pierre Poirier Richard  1 , Christian Gagnon  2
Affiliations

Cyanotoxin release from the benthic, mat-forming cyanobacterium Microseira (Lyngbya) wollei in the St. Lawrence River, Canada

Sylvie Poirier-Larabie et al. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2020 Aug.

Abstract

Benthic cyanobacterial mats occurring in the St. Lawrence River fluvial lakes Saint-Louis and Saint-Pierre are dominated by Microseira (Lyngbya) wollei which produce several cyanotoxins including LWTX-1 that is characteristic of Microseira wollei. This cyanotoxin is not only present in the filaments forming benthic mats, but was also measured in the water overlying the mats. LWTX-1 was found in all cyanobacterial filament samples (75.29-103.26 ng mg-1) and all overlying water samples (3.01-11.03 ng L-1). Toxin concentrations measured in overlying water and dry biomass were strongly correlated (r = 0.94). Furthermore, LWTX-1 concentration in water was positively correlated with the dissolved organic carbon in water (r = 0.74) and % nitrogen content in cyanobacterial filaments (r = 0.52). A preliminary study was conducted to determine the release and degradation rates of LWTX-1 from a M. wollei mat kept under laboratory conditions over a 3-month period. Toxin measurements revealed an early, massive toxin release followed by a typical decaying function, with a half-life in the order of 17 days. Our results raise concerns about the occurrence and downstream advection of dissolved cyanotoxins from Microseira mats in the aquatic environment. Graphical abstract.

Keywords: Benthic cyanobacterial mat; Cyanotoxin release; Mass spectrometry; Microseira (Lyngbya) wollei.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

None
Graphical abstract
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Molecular structure of LWTX-1 toxin
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Location of M. wollei sampling areas in fluvial lakes Saint-Louis and Saint-Pierre (rectangular boxes), St. Lawrence River (QC, Canada, see inset). Urbanized areas (in gray) and major tributaries are shown: waters from Great Lakes (green) and Ottawa River (brown)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Relationship between LWTX-1 concentration in water and aM. wollei biomass and b LWTX-1 in cyanobacterial filaments
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Relationships between LWTX-1 concentration in water and a dissolved organic carbon concentration and b nitrogen content in cyanobacterial filaments
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Rate of LWTX-1 release and degradation from a M. wollei mat maintained under controlled laboratory conditions over a 105-d period
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