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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, September 2005, p. 5177-5181, Vol. 71, No. 9
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.9.5177-5181.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

The Microcystin Composition of the Cyanobacterium Planktothrix agardhii Changes toward a More Toxic Variant with Increasing Light Intensity

Linda Tonk,1* Petra M. Visser,1 Guntram Christiansen,2,{dagger} Elke Dittmann,2 Eveline O. F. M. Snelder,1 Claudia Wiedner,1,{ddagger} Luuc R. Mur,1 and Jef Huisman1

Aquatic Microbiology, Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Nieuwe Achtergracht 127, 1018 WS Amsterdam, The Netherlands,1 Institute for Biology, Molecular Ecology, Humboldt University of Berlin, D-10115 Berlin, Germany2

Received 19 February 2005/ Accepted 29 March 2005

The cyanobacterium Planktothrix agardhii, which is dominant in many shallow eutrophic lakes, can produce hepatotoxic microcystins. Currently, more than 70 different microcystin variants have been described, which differ in toxicity. In this study, the effect of photon irradiance on the production of different microcystin variants by P. agardhii was investigated using light-limited turbidostats. Both the amount of the mRNA transcript of the mcyA gene and the total microcystin production rate increased with photon irradiance up to 60 µmol m–2 s–1, but they started to decrease with irradiance greater than 100 µmol m–2 s–1. The cellular content of total microcystin remained constant, independent of the irradiance. However, of the two main microcystin variants detected in P. agardhii, the microcystin-DeRR content decreased twofold with increased photon irradiance, whereas the microcystin-DeLR content increased threefold. Since microcystin-DeLR is considerably more toxic than microcystin-DeRR, this implies that P. agardhii becomes more toxic at high light intensities.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Aquatic Microbiology, Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Nieuwe Achtergracht 127, 1018 WS Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Phone: 31 20 5256027. Fax: 31 20 5257064. E-mail: ltonk{at}science.uva.nl.

{dagger} Present address: Department of Chemistry, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822.

{ddagger} Present address: Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Alte Fischerhütte 2, 16775 Neuglobsow, Germany.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, September 2005, p. 5177-5181, Vol. 71, No. 9
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.9.5177-5181.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Allender, C. J., LeCleir, G. R., Rinta-Kanto, J. M., Small, R. L., Satchwell, M. F., Boyer, G. L., Wilhelm, S. W. (2009). Identifying the Source of Unknown Microcystin Genes and Predicting Microcystin Variants by Comparing Genes within Uncultured Cyanobacterial Cells. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 3598-3604 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Briand, E., Gugger, M., Francois, J.-C., Bernard, C., Humbert, J.-F., Quiblier, C. (2008). Temporal Variations in the Dynamics of Potentially Microcystin-Producing Strains in a Bloom-Forming Planktothrix agardhii (Cyanobacterium) Population. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 74: 3839-3848 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Kardinaal, W. E. A., Tonk, L., Janse, I., Hol, S., Slot, P., Huisman, J., Visser, P. M. (2007). Competition for Light between Toxic and Nontoxic Strains of the Harmful Cyanobacterium Microcystis. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 73: 2939-2946 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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