Multi-residue Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography-High resolution mass spectrometric method for the analysis of 21 cyanotoxins in surface water for human consumption.

The presence of cyanobacteria and their toxins in water used as drinking water or for recreational purposes may represent a risk for human health. This work describes the development of an advanced analytical method for simultaneous determination of 21 cyanotoxins (including Microcystins, Cyanopeptolins, Anabaenopeptins and Microginins) in drinking water based on Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography coupled with a Q-TOF mass spectrometer. Water samples, spiked with Nodularin as internal standard at 1 μg/L, were extracted using Carbograph 4 SPE cartridge and 10 μL of the extracted sample were injected into the UPLC-HRMS/MS system.

Non-enzymatic portable optical sensors for microcystin-LR.

We present here the development of an all-solid-state optical sensor based on phenyl-substituted diaza-18-crown-6 hydroxyquinoline (DCHQ-Ph) for the indirect selective detection of microcystin-LR (MC-LR), reaching a very low detection limit of 0.05 μg L, well below the World Health Organisation (WHO) guideline value (1 μg L) in potable water. We demonstrate the potential applicability of the developed method in fast and low-cost water toxicity estimation.

Endurance of the endolithic desert cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis under UVC radiation.

Desert cyanobacteria of the genus Chroococcidiopsis are extremely resistant to desiccation and ionizing radiation. When an endolithic strain was exposed to UVC radiation cell lysis, genome damage, photosynthetic pigment bleaching and reduced photochemical performance occurred. Nevertheless, survivors were scored after UVC doses as high as 13 kJ/m(2) and their endurance ascribed to multicellular aggregates enveloped in thick envelopes, so that attenuated UVC radiation reached the inner cells.

Damage escape and repair in dried Chroococcidiopsis spp. from hot and cold deserts exposed to simulated space and martian conditions.

The cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis, overlain by 3 mm of Antarctic sandstone, was exposed as dried multilayers to simulated space and martian conditions. Ground-based experiments were conducted in the context of Lichens and Fungi Experiments (EXPOSE-E mission, European Space Agency), which were performed to evaluate, after 1.5 years on the International Space Station, the survival of cyanobacteria (Chroococcidiopsis), lichens, and fungi colonized on Antarctic rock.

Anatoxin-a toxin in the cyanobacterium Planktothrix rubescens from a fishing pond in northern Italy.

A heavy algal bloom occurring in a fishing pond in northern Italy full of Salmo trutta was examined for algae taxonomy and toxic production. The dominant algal species (98%) was identified as the cyanobacterium Planktothrix rubescens (D.C.