Abstract

We test previous claims that the bacteria Vibrio alginolyticus produces tetrodotoxin (TTX) when living in symbiosis with the nemertean Lineus longissimus by a setup with bacteria cultivation for TTX production. Toxicity experiments on the shore crab, Carcinus maenas, demonstrated the presence of a paralytic toxin, but evidence from LC-MS and electrophysiological measurements of voltage-gated sodium channel-dependent nerve conductance in male Wistar rat tissue showed conclusively that this effect did not originate from TTX. However, a compound of similar molecular weight was found, albeit apparently non-toxic, and with different LC retention time and MS/MS fragmentation pattern than those of TTX. We conclude that C. maenas paralysis and death likely emanate from a compound <5 kDa, and via a different mechanism of action than that of TTX. The similarity in mass between TTX and the Vibrio-produced low-molecular-weight, non-toxic compound invokes that thorough analysis is required when assessing TTX production. Based on our findings, we suggest that re-examination of some published claims of TTX production may be warranted.

Details

Title
The Bacterial (Vibrio alginolyticus) Production of Tetrodotoxin in the Ribbon Worm Lineus longissimus-Just a False Positive?
Author
Strand, Malin; Hedström, Martin; Seth, Henrik; McEvoy, Eric G; Jacobsson, Erik; Göransson, Ulf; Andersson, Håkan S; Sundberg, Per
Pages
63
Publication year
2016
Publication date
2016
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
16603397
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
1780812152
Copyright
Copyright MDPI AG 2016