Effect of Marine Toxins on the Rabbit Platelets

해양생물독의 혈소판 응집작용에 관한 연구

Incidents of seafood and massive fish kills have been rapidly increasing in both frequency and geographical distribution and the socioeconomic impacts brought by those incidents. However, the biological origins of those marine toxins have not been well clarified. Most of the marine organisms investigated are filter-feeder, which accumulate toxins from their food and/or their symbiotic microalgae. We have examined the action on rabbit platelets of marine toxins isolated from cultured dinoflagellates and sponge collected at Okinawa. Maitotoxin (MTX) is a water-soluble toxin isolated from the cultured dinoflagellate Gambierdiscus toxicus which causes a seafood poisoning in tropical regions. Zooxanthellatoxin A (ZT-A) was isolated from exteracts of cultured symbiotic dinoflagellate Symbiodinium sp. (socalled zooxanthella) from flatworms of the genus Amphiscolops collected at Okinawan marine sponge Theonella sp. MTX caused a disaggregation and a dissolution of large aggregates. ZT-A caused a dissolution of small aggregates followed by a increment of light tranmission. TZ-A caused an initial and transient shape change followed by a sustained aggregation and a increment of large aggregates. In conclusion, marine toxins exert unique patterns on the light trasmission and the size of aggregates in rabbit platelets by their concentrations and kinds