Morón-Asensio, R. & R. Kurmayer, 2026. Subcellular visualization and quantification of cyanotoxin synthesis in cyanobacteria reveals distinct compartmentation. Scientific Reports doi:10.1038/s41598-026-47303-1.
In this study, at an unprecedented spatial resolution, two different cyanotoxins were quantified in two cyanobacteria, Microcystis aeruginosa and Planktothrix agardhii, that occur in distinct entities and probably represent the origin of cyanotoxin synthesis. A rather stable intracellular distribution of the origin of cyanotoxin synthesis was assigned to two compartments (the cytoplasm vs. the membrane region). However, this distribution differed in principle between the two cyanobacteria. These entities increased or decreased in signal intensity sharply during time-lapse experiments, whereas their volume, number per cell and intracellular distribution remained relatively stable. This relative stability supports the hypothesis that heterogeneous intracellular structures represent locations of intracellular peptide synthesis rather than compartments for cyanotoxin storage.