A new pectenotoxin, which has been named pectenotoxin-11 (PTX11), was isolated from the dinoflagellate Dinophysis acuta collected from the west coast of New Zealand. The structure of PTX11 was determined as 34S-hydroxypectenotoxin-2 by tandem mass spectrometry and UV and NMR spectroscopy. PTX11 appears to be only the third pectenotoxin identified as a natural biosynthetic product from algae after pectenotoxin-2 and pectenotoxin-12. The LD50 of PTX11 determined by mouse intraperitoneal injection was 244 microg/kg. The LD(min) of PTX11 in these experiments was 250 microg/kg. No signs of toxicity were recorded in mice following an oral dose of PTX11 at 5000 microg/kg. No diarrhea was observed in any of the animals administered with the test substance by either route of administration. Unlike pectenotoxin-2 (PTX2), PTX11 was not readily hydrolyzed to its corresponding seco acid by enzymes from homogenized green-lipped mussel (Perna canaliculus) hepatopancreas.