''Lyngbya majuscula'' is a species of
filamentous cyanobacteria in the
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...
''
Lyngbya''. It is named after the
Dane Hans Christian Lyngbye.
As a result of recent genetic analyses, several new genera were erected from the genus ''Lyngbya'': ''e.g.'', ''
Moorea
Moorea ( or ; Tahitian: ), also spelled Moorea, is a volcanic island in French Polynesia. It is one of the Windward Islands, a group that is part of the Society Islands, northwest of Tahiti. The name comes from the Tahitian word , meaning " ...
'',
''
Limnoraphis'',
''
Okeania'',
''
Microseira'',
and ''
Dapis''.
Almost 300 different secondary metabolites have been isolated from specimens identified as ''L. majuscula''. However, most of these studies lack a molecular identification of the samples. Several specimens identified as ''L. majuscula'' and collected in marine tropical regions are now classified as members of the genera ''Okeania'' and ''Moorea''.
Antillatoxin
Antillatoxin (ATX) is a potent lipopeptide neurotoxin produced by the marine cyanobacterium ''Lyngbya majuscula''. ATX activates voltage-gated sodium channels, which can cause cell depolarisation, NMDA-receptor overactivity, excess calcium influx ...
and
Kalkitoxin
Kalkitoxin, a toxin derived from the cyanobacterium ''Lyngbya majuscula'', induces NMDA receptor mediated neuronal necrosis, blocks voltage-dependent sodium channels, and induces cellular hypoxia by inhibiting the electron transport chain (ETC) ...
have been reported to be extracted from this microbe.
''L. majuscula'' is the cause of seaweed dermatitis.
References
Oscillatoriales
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