Table 1.
Cyanotoxins with public health significance from acute exposures
Toxin or toxin group | Classification by principal target organ systems | Toxin-producing genera | LD50(i.p. mouse) | References |
Microcystins | Hepatotoxins | Anabaena, Anabaenopsis, Aphanocapsa, Arthrospira, Hapalosiphon, Microcystis, Nostoc, Oscillatoria, Planktothrix, Snowella, Woronichinia | 25->1000 μg/kg | [10, 19, 26, 125-128] |
Nodularins | Hepatotoxins | Nodularia | 30–60 μg/kg | [8, 26, 129] |
Anatoxin-a, homoanatoxin-a | Neurotoxins | Anabaena, Aphanizomenon, Arthrospira, Cylindrospermum, Microcystis, Oscillatoria, Phormidium, Planktothrix, Raphidiopsis | 200–375 μg/kg | [8, 10, 18, 26, 130-135] |
Anatoxin-a(s) | Neurotoxin | Anabaena | 20–40 μg/kg | [8, 26, 132] |
Saxitoxins | Neurotoxins | Anabaena, Aphanizomenon, Cylindrospermopsis, Lyngbya, Planktothrix | 10–30 μg/kg | [26, 127, 132, 136-140] |
Cylindrospermopsin | General cytotoxin (multiple organ systems affected, incl. liver, kidney, gastrointestinal tract, heart, spleen, thymus, skin) | Anabaena, Aphanizomenon, Cylindrospermopsis, Raphidiopsis, Umezakia | 2.1 mg/kg (24 hours) 200 μg/kg (5–6 days) | [8, 10, 17, 132, 141-145] |
Aplysiatoxin, debromoaplysiatoxin | Dermal toxins; probable gastro-intestinal inflammatory toxin | Lyngbya | 107–117 μg/kg | [146-152] |
Lyngbyatoxin A | Possible gastro-intestinal inflammatory toxin | Lyngbya | 250 μg/kg (?LD100) | [153] |