Science on Tap: Let's Talk Toxins!

Nature makes a variety of small molecules with unique chemical structures and sometimes useful biological activities to enhance and improve human health. However, naturally-occurring small molecules can also have detrimental effects on human health and the environment as a whole. One major example of this are harmful algal blooms that plague both the marine and freshwater biospheres and produce potent neurotoxins with devastating bioactivities. Our lab has focused on understanding how neurotoxins are constructed at the molecular level using a combination of chemistry, biochemistry, and molecular biology techniques. We will highlight our work on two major neurotoxins produced by different biological organisms from diverse environments: first the marine neurotoxin domoic acid produced by single-celled microalgal diatoms with disastrous global ecological and economic implications; and the incredibly potent guanitoxin produced by blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) that is presently not monitored in any freshwater testing. An increased understanding of how these molecules are constructed in a lab setting will provide harmful algal bloom researchers with additional tools to identify and ideally predict environmental toxicity on our ever-changing planet.

Speaker: Shaun McKinnie, UC Santa Cruz