EN
Cyanobacterial blooms, often observed in eutrophic water reservoirs, produce toxic metabolites known as cyanotoxins that affect animal health. There are five groups of cyanotoxins classified on the basis of their toxic action: hepatotoxins, neurotoxins, cytotoxins, dermatotoxins and irritant toxins. Microcystin (MC) is a very common and well described hepatotoxin produced by various genera, such as Microcystis, Anabaena, Planktothrix, Anabenopsis, Hapalosiphon and Nostoc. It acts as an inhibitor of serine/threonine protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) and 2A (PP2A), inducing hyperphosphorylation of cell proteins and a variety of toxic changes in hepatocytes often leading to liver insufficiency and death caused by hypovolemic shock. Since the reports on MC toxicity are on the increase this cyanotoxin should be treated as an important environmental factor affecting human and animal health. A brief overview of existing literature on the intake, mechanism of action, and hepatotoxic effects on mammalian animals is presented in this paper