ABSTRACT
Marine toxin detection methods can be grouped into two main categories, analytical methods, which are based on the physicochemical properties of the compounds of interest, and biological methods, which include a biological component in the detection system. Regarding biological methods, two different classes should be discriminated due to their toxin detection characteristics, biochemical methods, and functional/receptor-based methods. Receptor/target-based assays use the interaction of a receptor or biological target with a toxin or group of toxins to sense their occurrence. For functional and receptor/target-based assays, there is a better chance that the result provides a good estimation of sample toxicity. Animal bioassays consist of the administration of a sample extract to an animal and observation of the appearance of toxicity signs. Target-based functional methods provide information about the modification of the activity of a biological target by the presence of the toxin of interest.
