Cyanobacteria produce a wide range of structurally diverse cyanotoxins and bioactive cyanopeptides in freshwater, marine, and terrestrial ecosystems. The health significance of these metabolites, which include genotoxic- and neurotoxic agents, is confirmed by continued associations between the occurrence of animal and human acute toxic events and, in the long term, by associations between cyanobacteria and neurodegenerative diseases. One of the implicated mechanisms includes a misincorporation of cyanobacterial non-proteogenic amino acids leading to mistranslation and protein misfolding. A better understanding of the interaction between the cyanopeptide metabolism and the nervous system will be crucial to target or to prevent pathogenic response.
Biology and Life Sciences, Immunology and Microbiology
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Received:
20 January 2023
The commenter has declared there is no conflict of interests.
Comment:
Hi, I do not agree with the review in terms of the main mechanism cited for BMAA toxicity, namely misincorporation into the primary protein structure. There is more literature out there to show that misincorporation does not occur than literature to support misincorporation as a mechanism of toxicity.
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The commenter has declared there is no conflict of interests.