''Azadinium spinosum'' is a species of dinoflagellates that produces
azaspiracid toxins (toxins associated with
shellfish poisoning
Shellfish poisoning includes four syndromes that share some common features and are primarily associated with bivalve molluscs (such as mussels, clams, oysters and scallops.) As filter feeders, these shellfish may accumulate toxins produced by m ...
),
particularly AZA 1, AZA 2 and an isomer of AZA 2.
Description
It measures 12–16
μm
The micrometre (Commonwealth English as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American English), also commonly known by the non-SI term micron, is a unit of length in the International System ...
in length and 7–11 μm wide, is a
peridinin
Peridinin is a light-harvesting apocarotenoid, a pigment associated with chlorophyll and found in the peridinin-chlorophyll-protein (PCP) light-harvesting complex in dinoflagellates, best studied in '' Amphidinium carterae''.
Biological signific ...
-containing
photosynthetic
Photosynthesis ( ) is a Biological system, system of biological processes by which Photoautotrophism, photosynthetic organisms, such as most plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, convert light energy, typically from sunlight, into the chemical ener ...
dinoflagellate with a thin
theca
In biology, a theca (: thecae) is a sheath or a covering.
Botany
In botany, the theca is related to plant's flower anatomy. The theca of an angiosperm consists of a pair of microsporangia that are adjacent to each other and share a common ar ...
. Its large nucleus is spherical and present posteriorly, whereas its single
chloroplast
A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle, organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant cell, plant and algae, algal cells. Chloroplasts have a high concentration of chlorophyll pigments which captur ...
is parietal, lobed, and extends into the
epi- and
hyposome.
References
Further reading
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External links
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Dinophyceae
Dinoflagellate species
Protists described in 2009
{{dinoflagellate-stub