EVALUATION OF BIOASSAY FOR TOXICITY OF CIGUATERIC FISH AND ASSOCIATEDTOXINS

Evaluation of the mouse toxicity assay symptom of hind leg paralysis ( HLP) with mouse death by statistical analysis is presented in this stu dy. The fishes assessed were herbivores including Ctenochaetus strigos us (kole), Ctenochaetus hawaiiensis, Acanthurus sandivcensis (manini), and Mugil cephalus (mullet); and the carnivores, Cephalopholis argus (roi) and Cheilinus rhodochrous (po'ou). The latter can also be consid ered an omnivore. The extracts of both herbivore and carnivore species appeared to be most toxic when HLP occurred in the mice. Ninety-three percent of the mice with HLP died, whereas when no HLP (NHLP) occurre d, only 51% of the mice died. Carnivore flesh extracts (po'ou and roi) were least toxic with one death out of a total 22 mice. The unidentif ied toxin associated with HLP appears to differ in biological properti es from that of ciguatoxin(s) in that it was not found in the flesh ti ssues of carnivores. Further chemical studies of this toxin(s) is bein g addressed presently. (C) 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.