Brevetoxin B4 isolated from greenshell mussels Perna canaliculus, the major toxin involved in neurotoxic shellfish poisoning in New Zealand.

Abstract

A new brevetoxin B analog, brevetoxin B4 (BTXB4), was isolated as the major toxin in greenshell mussels, Perna canaliculus, collected in New Zealand at the time of the neurotoxic shellfish poisoning incident. The new analog accounted for nearly two-thirds of the mouse lethality of the shellfish and was determined to be a mixture of N-myristoyl-BTXB2 and N-palmitoyl-BTXB2.