Purification of microcystins

Microcystins are an increasingly important group of bioactive compounds pro duced by a number of mainly planktonic cyanobacteria. They are a family of cyclic heptapeptides that cause both acute and chronic toxicity. Purified m icrocystins are utilised in a range of research applications including toxi cological and biochemical studies, development of detection systems and the investigation of water treatment strategies. The commercial availability o f purified microcystins is still relatively limited and for many projects t he cost of their purchase prohibitive. The purification of microcystins fro m both bloom material and laboratory cultures is reviewed including a discu ssion on extraction, separation, and the determination of purity and yield. (C) 2001 published by Elsevier Science B.V.