Mussels exposed to dinoflagellates may represent a human health risk due to accumulation of a variety of algal toxins. In several parts of the world, algal toxins leading to diarrhea (diarrhetic shellfish poisons, DSP) are found in mussels for extended periods of the year. Routine monitoring of these toxins involves ip injections in mice. Chemical analytical methods have been developed for only some of the toxins in question, namely, those giving diarrhea. Other toxins in the DSP complex are not easily detected by analytical methods. In this report we show that freshly prepared hepatocytes from rats are a convenient means to differentiate between the toxins that give diarrhea and those that do not. Consequently, hepatocytes can be useful in both screening and as a tool in the process of developing analytical methods. Freshly prepared hepatocytes might be useful in combination either with the mouse bioassay or with chemical analytical methods.

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