Cylyndrospermospis (CYN) Algae Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Cylyndrospermospis (CYN) Algae - Essay Example The paper analyses the risk of Cylindrospermopsin toxicity in human beings posed by consumption of seafood which are highly regarded s the toxin agents. The assessment covers the risk of exposure through seafood consumption by residents of Victoria, Australia, around the Gippsland Lakes, neglecting other kinds of exposure since the place where the field of study is other factors are either do not exist or are neglable. These other risk factors include: exposure due to recreational activities, which is highly advocated against in the area; and exposure through drinking water, which is ruled out since the water drunk the residents is not sourced at the Cyanobacteria infested Gippsland Lakes. Introduction Cylindrospermopsin is a toxin that occurs naturally, and is produced by specific strains of Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii among at least 4 other freshwater cyanobacterial species, counting Umezakia natans, Anabaena bergii, Raphidiopsis curvata and Aphanizomenon ovalisporum (Aldrich, 2 012, p. 3). Cylindrospermopsin chemical structure was not clarified until 1992. It comprises of a tri-cyclic guanidine moiety combined with hydroxyl-methyl-uracil. Its molecular formula is C15H21N5O7S and molecular weight is 415.43. It is zwitterionic (a di-polar ion with localized negative and positive charges). Deoxycylindro-spermopsin, a cylindrospermopsin analog in which the hydroxyl group in the uracil bridge has been removed, isolated from R. curvata and C. raciborskii (Aldrich, 2012, p. 3) . 7-epicylindrospermopsin is another structural variation of cylindrospermopsin which was isolated from A. ovalisporum. The Gippsland Lakes is a coastal lagoons system located at southeast of Victoria in Australia, approximately 200 kilometers east Melbourne and are key for commercial, tourist and recreational activities. The Lakes act as a source of commercial seafood, including fish, crustaceans and shellfish, as well as providing general recreational fishing. Considerable modifications h ave occurred on the Lakes catchments since European settlement with fisheries and agricultural development, including the establishment of a permanently open Bass Straight entrance in 1889. This environment, once freshwater lake, is currently a more saline and high nutrient expanse, and cyanobacterial (the blue-green algal) blooms are now becoming a normal occurrence. Ever since 1985, there have existed 7 non-cyanobacterial blooms noted in the Lakes (commonly dinoflagellates or diatoms), and 12 cyanobacterial blooms (Kaarina Sivonen, 1999, p. 4). Nodularia spumigenna is the most common cyanobacterium to bloom, with periodic Microcystis aeruginosa and Anabaena circinalis blooms (Anon., n.d., p. 169) So as to provide guidance and to delineate acceptable levels of Cylindrospermopsin in seafood in Victoria, the Victorian Health Department convened a scientific advisory professional to perform a risk assessment regarding recreational and commercial seafood safety in the Victoria Gippslan d Lakes (Kankaanpaa, 2005, p. 3). The seafood of concern was fish, mussels and prawns from these lakes. Cylindrospermopsin was among the toxins detected in the risk assessment, others being saxitoxins, microcystins, nodularin - all of which are found in Australian aquatic surroundings and are distributed global (Moreira, et al., 2012, p. 3). Cyanobacterial blooms largely depend on water temperature and nutrient availability,