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Toxins
Special Issues
Human Exposure to Freshwater Toxins: Assessment, Potential, Consequences and Prevention
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Human Exposure to Freshwater Toxins: Assessment, Potential, Consequences and Prevention

A special issue of Toxins (ISSN 2072-6651). This special issue belongs to the section "Marine and Freshwater Toxins".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 April 2020) | Viewed by 16344

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Piotr Rzymski

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Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Medicine, Poznań University of Medical Sciences, 60-806 Poznań, Poland
Interests: cyanobacteria; aquatic toxicology; aquatic pollution; hydrobiology; viral diseases; vaccines; COVID-19; hepatitis; epidemiology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Halina Falfushynska

E-Mail
Guest Editor
Ternopil Volodymyr Hnatiuk National Pedagogical University, Ternopil, Ukraine
Interests: Toxicology in vitro; Toxicology in vivo; Cancer research; Toxinology; Aquatic biota

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last decades, there has been a substantial effort to understand the mechanisms of the various actions of freshwater toxins derived from in vitro and in vivo models. Particular attention has been paid to the toxic metabolites produced by cyanobacteria, namely microcystins, cylindrospermopsin, anatoxin-a, saxitoxins, beta-methyl-amino-L-alanine, and polymethoxy-alkenes. The presence of selected compounds of this group has also been monitored in surface waters, freshwater biota, and food. There is still, however, a need to fully assess the risks of exposure in human via the recreational use of water, drinking water, and diet, as well as to estimate the potential effects of such exposure.

This Special Issue will welcome original and review manuscripts that focus on the following:

- cases of human intoxications with freshwater toxins

- assessment of dietary risks of exposure to freshwater toxins

- assessment of exposure to freshwater toxins during recreational activities

- assessment of potential associations between presence of freshwater toxins and human disease

- suggestions for clinical interventions in poisonings with freshwater toxins

Dr. Piotr Rzymski
Dr. Halina Falfushynska
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxins is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Freshwater toxins
  • Cyanobacteria
  • Cyanotoxins
  • Drinking water
  • Dietary exposures
  • Microcystins
  • Cylindrospermopsin
  • Anatoxin-a
  • Saxitoxins
  • Beta-methyl-amino-l-alanine
  • Polymethoxy-alkenes

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 1876 KiB  
Article
In Vitro Toxicological Screening of Stable and Senescing Cultures of Aphanizomenon, Planktothrix, and Raphidiopsis
by Łukasz Wejnerowski, Halina Falfushynska, Oksana Horyn, Inna Osypenko, Mikołaj Kokociński, Jussi Meriluoto, Tomasz Jurczak, Barbara Poniedziałek, Filip Pniewski and Piotr Rzymski
Toxins 2020, 12(6), 400; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins12060400 - 17 Jun 2020
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3604
Abstract
Toxicity of cyanobacteria is the subject of ongoing research, and a number of toxic metabolites have been described, their biosynthesis pathways have been elucidated, and the mechanism of their action has been established. However, several knowledge gaps still exist, e.g., some strains produce [...] Read more.
Toxicity of cyanobacteria is the subject of ongoing research, and a number of toxic metabolites have been described, their biosynthesis pathways have been elucidated, and the mechanism of their action has been established. However, several knowledge gaps still exist, e.g., some strains produce hitherto unknown toxic compounds, while the exact dynamics of exerted toxicity during cyanobacterial growth still requires further exploration. Therefore, the present study investigated the toxicity of extracts of nine freshwater strains of Aphanizomenon gracile, an Aphanizomenon sp. strain isolated from the Baltic Sea, a freshwater strain of Planktothrix agardhii, and two strains of Raphidiopsis raciborskii obtained from 25- and 70-day-old cultures. An in vitro experimental model based on Cyprinus carpio hepatocytes (oxidative stress markers, DNA fragmentation, and serine/threonine protein activity) and brain homogenate (cholinesterase activity) was employed. The studied extracts demonstrated toxicity to fish cells, and in general, all examined extracts altered at least one or more of considered parameters, indicating that they possess, to some degree, toxic potency. Although the time from which the extracts were obtained had a significant importance for the response of fish cells, we observed strong variability between the different strains and species. In some strains, extracts that originated from 25-day-old cultures triggered more harmful effects on fish cells compared to those obtained from 70-day-old cultures, whereas in other strains, we observed the opposite effect or a lack of a significant change. Our study revealed that there was no clear or common pattern regarding the degree of cyanobacterial bloom toxicity at a given stage of development. This means that young cyanobacterial blooms that are just forming can pose an equally toxic threat to aquatic vertebrates and ecosystem functioning as those that are stable or old with a tendency to collapse. This might be largely due to a high variability of strains in the bloom. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human Exposure to Freshwater Toxins: Assessment, Potential, Consequences and Prevention)
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16 pages, 1340 KiB  
Article
The Occurrence of Potential Harmful Cyanobacteria and Cyanotoxins in the Obrzyca River (Poland), a Source of Drinking Water
by Wanda Czyżewska, Marlena Piontek and Katarzyna Łuszczyńska
Toxins 2020, 12(5), 284; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins12050284 - 28 Apr 2020
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3758
Abstract
Harmful cyanobacteria and their cyanotoxins may contaminate drinking water resources and their effective control remains challenging. The present study reports on cyanobacterial blooms and associated cyanotoxins in the Obrzyca River, a source of drinking water in Poland. The river was examined from July [...] Read more.
Harmful cyanobacteria and their cyanotoxins may contaminate drinking water resources and their effective control remains challenging. The present study reports on cyanobacterial blooms and associated cyanotoxins in the Obrzyca River, a source of drinking water in Poland. The river was examined from July to October 2019 and concentrations of microcystins, anatoxin-a, and cylindrospermopsin were monitored. The toxicity of water samples was also tested using an ecotoxicological assay. All studied cyanotoxins were detected with microcystins revealing the highest levels. Maximal microcystin concentrations (3.97 μg/L) were determined in September at Uście point, exceeding the provisional guideline. Extracts from Uście point, where the dominant species were Dolichospermum flos-aquae (August), Microcystis aeruginosa (September), and Planktothrix agardhii (October), were toxic for Dugesia tigrina Girard. Microcystin concentrations (MC-LR and MC-RR) were positively correlated with cyanobacteria biovolume. Analysis of the chemical indicators of water quality has shown relationships between them and microcystins as well as cyanobacteria abundance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human Exposure to Freshwater Toxins: Assessment, Potential, Consequences and Prevention)
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13 pages, 754 KiB  
Article
Polymethoxy-1-Alkenes Screening of Chlorella and Spirulina Food Supplements Coupled with In Vivo Toxicity Studies
by Eliana Henao, Patrick J. Murphy, Halina Falfushynska, Oksana Horyn, Daniel M. Evans, Piotr Klimaszyk and Piotr Rzymski
Toxins 2020, 12(2), 111; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins12020111 - 10 Feb 2020
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4497
Abstract
Selected species of cyanobacteria and green algae have been reported to produce lipophilic polymethoxy-1-alkenes (PMAs) which were shown to exhibit in vivo teratogenicity. Considering that information on PMAs in Arthospira sp. (known commercially as Spirulina) and Chlorella sp. cultivated for food supplement production [...] Read more.
Selected species of cyanobacteria and green algae have been reported to produce lipophilic polymethoxy-1-alkenes (PMAs) which were shown to exhibit in vivo teratogenicity. Considering that information on PMAs in Arthospira sp. (known commercially as Spirulina) and Chlorella sp. cultivated for food supplement production was essentially lacking, the present study screened Chlorella (n = 10) and Spirulina (n = 13) food supplements registered in the European Union. Mass spectrometry analysis of column fractionated extracts was performed. None of the four variants previously reported in some cyanobacteria and green algae, nor any potentially related structures were detected in the studied samples. Since the isolated lipophilic fractions contained various compounds, they were further screened for in vivo teratogenicity in Danio rerio embryo, and for the potential to induce oxidative stress and genotoxicity in the liver and neurotoxicity in the brain of adult zebrafish. None of the tested food supplements had detectable levels of PMAs or any potentially related structures. No teratogenicity was revealed except for spinal curvature induced by fractions obtained from two Chlorella products. Selected fractions revealed cytotoxicity as indicated by an increased level of reactive oxygen species, catalase activity, lipid peroxidation and increased frequency of DNA strand breaks in hepatic tissue. The majority (60%) of Chlorella fractions induced an increase in cholinesterase activity in zebrafish brain homogenate while exposure to 61.5% of Spirulina fractions was associated with its decrease. The present study confirms that Chlorella and Spirulina food supplements are free of teratogenic PMAs, although the observed in vivo toxicities raise questions regarding the quality of selected products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human Exposure to Freshwater Toxins: Assessment, Potential, Consequences and Prevention)
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16 pages, 1362 KiB  
Article
The Effect of a Combined Hydrogen Peroxide-MlrA Treatment on the Phytoplankton Community and Microcystin Concentrations in a Mesocosm Experiment in Lake Ludoš
by Dariusz Dziga, Nada Tokodi, Damjana Drobac, Mikołaj Kokociński, Adam Antosiak, Jakub Puchalski, Wojciech Strzałka, Mariusz Madej, Zorica Svirčev and Jussi Meriluoto
Toxins 2019, 11(12), 725; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins11120725 - 11 Dec 2019
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 3826
Abstract
Harmful cyanobacteria and their toxic metabolites constitute a big challenge for the production of safe drinking water. Microcystins (MC), chemically stable hepatotoxic heptapeptides, have often been involved in cyanobacterial poisoning incidents. A desirable solution for cyanobacterial management in lakes and ponds would eliminate [...] Read more.
Harmful cyanobacteria and their toxic metabolites constitute a big challenge for the production of safe drinking water. Microcystins (MC), chemically stable hepatotoxic heptapeptides, have often been involved in cyanobacterial poisoning incidents. A desirable solution for cyanobacterial management in lakes and ponds would eliminate both excess cyanobacteria and the MC that they potentially produce and release upon lysis. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) has recently been advocated as an efficient means of lysing cyanobacteria in lakes and ponds, however H2O2 (at least when used at typical concentrations) cannot degrade MC in environmental waters. Therefore, mesocosm experiments combining the cyanobacteria-lysing effect of H2O2 and the MC-degrading capacity of the enzyme MlrA were set up in the highly eutrophic Lake Ludoš (Serbia). The H2O2 treatment decreased the abundance of the dominant cyanobacterial taxa Limnothrix sp., Aphanizomenon flos-aquae, and Planktothrix agardhii. The intracellular concentration of MC was reduced/eliminated by H2O2, yet the reduction of the extracellular MC could only be accomplished by supplementation with MlrA. However, as H2O2 was found to induce the expression of mcyB and mcyE genes, which are involved in MC biosynthesis, the use of H2O2 as a safe cyanobacteriocide still requires further investigation. In conclusion, the experiments showed that the combined use of H2O2 and MlrA is promising in the elimination of both excess cyanobacteria and their MC in environmental waters. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human Exposure to Freshwater Toxins: Assessment, Potential, Consequences and Prevention)
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