New Report of Cyanobacteria and Cyanotoxins in El Pañe Reservoir: A Threat for Water Quality in High-Andean Sources from PERU.

Cyanobacteria are cosmopolitan organisms; nonetheless, climate change and eutrophication are increasing the occurrence of cyanobacteria blooms (cyanoblooms), thereby raising the risk of cyanotoxins in water sources used for drinking, agriculture, and livestock. This study aimed to determine the presence of cyanobacteria, including toxigenic cyanobacteria and the occurrence of cyanotoxins in the El Pañe reservoir located in the high-Andean region, Arequipa, Peru, to support water quality management. The study included morphological observation of cyanobacteria, molecular determination of cyanobacteria (16S rRNA analysis), and analysis of cyanotoxins encoding genes ( for microcystins, for cylindrospermopsins, for saxitoxins, and for anatoxins).