State-of-the-art review on the ecotoxicology, health hazards, and economic loss of the impact of microcystins and their ultrastructural cellular changes.

Cyanobacteria are ubiquitously globally present in both freshwater and marine environments. Ample reports have been documented by researchers worldwide for pros and cons of cyanobacterial toxins. The implications of cyanobacterial toxin on health have received much attention in recent decades. Microcystins (MCs) represent the unique class of toxic metabolites produced by cyanobacteria. Although the beneficial aspects of cyanobacterial are numerous, the deleterious effect of MCs overlooked. Several studies on MCs evidently reported that MCs exhibit a plethora of harmful effect on animals, plants, and cell lines. Accordingly, numerous histopathological studies have also found that MCs cause detrimental effects to cells by damaging cellular organelles, including nuclear envelope, Golgi apparatus, endoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria, plastids, flagellum, pilus membrane structures and integrity, vesicle structures, and autolysosomes and autophagosomes. Such ultrastructural cellular damages holistically influence the morphological, biochemical, physiological, and genetic status of the host. Indeed, MCs have also been found to cause the deleterious effect to different animals and plants. Such deleterious effects of MCs have greater impact on agriculture, public health which in turn influences ecotoxicology and economic consequences. The impairments correspond to oxidative stress, organ failure, carcinogenesis, aquaculture loss, with an emphasis for blooms and respective bioaccumulation prospects. The preservation of mortality among life forms is addressed in a critical cellular perspective for multitude benefits. The comprehensive cellular assessment could provide opportunity to develop strategy for therapeutic implications.