Transmembrane transport of microcystin to Danio rerio zygotes: insights into the developmental toxicity of environmental contaminants.

Microcystins (MCs) produced by cyanobacteria and their continuing "blooms" are a worldwide problem owing to the toxicity of microcystin-LR (MC-LR) to plants and animals. In the present study, we investigated membrane transport of MC-LR and its toxic effects on zebrafish embryos using fragmentation of embryos, scanning electron microscope (SEM), fluorescence microscopy, and toxic exposure tests. At a concentration < 0.04 mmol/l, MC-LR was predominantly adsorbed on outer membrane surface of embryos according to Langmuir isotherm. The absorption characteristics of MC-LR within the range from 0.05 to 0.4 mmol/l conformed to Freundlich isotherm model. At concentrations > 0.50 mmol/l MC-LR directly entered the cytoplasm via partition. Thinning and disruption of membranes was confirmed using SEM and fluorescence morphological observations. Exposure to different concentrations of MC-LR resulted in differences in membrane transport and toxicity characteristics. At low concentrations, more than 75% of the adsorbed MC-LR accumulated on the outer membrane surface and resulted in axial malformation, tail curving, and tail twisting. Increasing the concentration of MC-LR to between 0.05 and 0.4 mmol/l improved membrane transport and it was evident in cytoplasm of embryos, resulting in serious pericardial edema, hatching gland edema, hemagglutination, hemorrhage, and vacuolization. At > 0.50 mmol/l, more than 70% of the adsorbed MC-LR entered the cytoplasm and this was lethal to the embryos. The current research outlines a new method and mechanism for the transmembrane transport of large molecular weight organic compounds and could be important for studies concerning molecular toxicology.