Macroalgae synthesize molecules that may be toxic to other organisms. These molecules are synthesized as a defense strategy against herbivores. It has been proven that the synthesis process is directed by several physiological, chemical and even spatial-temporal variables. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the complexity of the habitat influences on the expression of marine macroalgae toxicity. Algae of 31 species (39 samples) were collected in localities with different habitat morphology: a coral reef in the Mexican Caribbean, three myxohaline localities in the Yucatán peninsula and six rocky intertidal localities, four of these in the Mexican Pacific and two in the Gulf of Mexico. Results identified 19 strongly toxic species from the reef, followed by algae collected in the rocky intertidal area, and the least number of toxic species in the myxohaline environments. The results support the hypothesis established by several researchers worldwide regarding the complexity of coral reefs, which promotes the synthesis of toxic substances as a defense against herbivores. These substances have been employed as molecules that are useful in the fight against diseases or as synthesis matrices of other compounds with pharmacological potential.
Some microalgae are economically important in Mexico and the world because they can be potentially toxic. Algal explosive population growths are named harmful algal blooms and are frequently recorded in Mexico. The authors set up potentially toxic microalgae cultures from the Gulf of Mexico (Garrapatas tideland, Barberena river, Carpintero lagoon in Tamaulipas State; Chalchoapan and Catemaco lakes in Veracruz State), from the Mexican Pacific Ocean, Guerrero, Colima and Michoacán States, and from interior water bodies such as Vicente Aguirre dam, Chapultepec lake and several waste water treatment plants. This research is about the diversity and abundance of phytoplankton in relation a specific site because of harmful algal bloom events. Microalgae cultures are useful in order to solve taxonomic problems, to know life cycles, molecular studies, for the study of toxic species, and the isolation of useful metabolites. The cultures for this research are clonal, non-axenic, semi-continuous, 12:12 light/dark photoperiod, 20 ± 1 °C temperature and 90.5 µmol m(-2)s(-1) illumination. Four different culture media were used. This collection is open to the worldwide scientific community as a source of organisms in controlled conditions that can be used as a useful tool for microalgae research work.
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