Under certain environmental conditions, some species of cyanobacteria (such as Microcystis aerug-inosa and Anabaena flos-aquae) produce toxins that are released in water upon the death of the algal cells. The most studied class of these toxins, the micro-cystins, are 7 amino acid cyclic peptide hepatotoxins and consist of 65 analogs, each with a unique level of toxicity (Carmichael 1997, 2001). Several methods have been developed to measure microcystin toxins in water as well as from extracts of algal cells. Availability of sample type, speed of analysis, analytical sensitivity, degree of accuracy, and cost often dictate which approach is used. However, the number of available methods can be problematic when comparing data between and among studies. In this manuscript, we present an HPLC method for extraction, cleanup and detection of four microcystins - micro-cystin-LR, microcystin-LA, microcystin-YR, and microcystin-RR. We then compare results from this method to results obtained with a commercial ELISA determined from field-collected samples.
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