Algae Toxin Identification Unravels Fish-Kill Mystery

A team of researchers from the Hollings Marine Laboratory in Charleston, S.C., has uncovered a subtle chemical pathway by which normally inoffensive algae, Pfiesteria piscicida, can suddenly start producing a lethal toxin. The discovery, reported last week in Environmental Science and Technology, could resolve a long-standing mystery surrounding occasional mass fish kills on the East Coast.