Search results for: bloom

Pseudo-nitzschia: Emerging HAB threat in the Gulf of Maine PIs:  D.M. Anderson (WHOI), D.L. Erdner (Univ. of Texas), S.S. Bates (Fisheries and Oceans Canada) In July, 2003, more than 20 whales, mostly humpbacks, were found dead near Georges Bank. Concurrently, several dead whales were found in nearshore waters of Maine, where 42 unexplained seal mortalities…

A comprehensive comparative genomic approach for identifying the saxitoxin synthesis genes Lead PI:  G. Plumley, Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences. Co-PIs:  D.M. Anderson (WHOI), D. Bhattacharya (U. of Iowa), J.D. Hackett (U. of Arizona) and J. Loram (Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences) Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) is a potentially fatal syndrome associated with the consumption…

Deposition and resuspension of Alexandrium fundyense resting cysts in the Gulf of Maine: Phase II The Gulf of Maine (GOM) supports productive shellfisheries frequently impacted by paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) – a serious threat to human health caused by the toxic dinoflagellate Alexandrium fundyense. PSP is the most widespread of the poisoning syndromes associated with harmful…

GOMTOX Dynamics of Alexandrium fundyense distributions in the Gulf of Maine An observational and modeling study of nearshore and offshore shellfish toxicity, vertical toxin flux, and bloom dynamics in a complex shelf sea. The Gulf of Maine (GoM) and its adjacent southern New England shelf is a vast region with extensive shellfish resources, large portions of which…

Development and application of a fiber optic array system for detection and enumeration of potentially toxic cyanobacteria   PIs D.M. Anderson and W.W. Carmichael Harmful algal blooms (HABs) have become a serious threat  to freshwater and marine waters worldwide, impacting humans, animals, and aquatic ecosystems. In freshwater, many cyanobacterial blooms (cyanoHABs) produce neurotoxic, hepatotoxic, dermatotoxic,…

Ciguatera Project   Impact of climate on dinoflagellates and ciguatera fish poisoning  In exploring links between climate change and human illness, significant attention has been given to the potential impact of such change on harmful algal bloom (HAB) populations and the illnesses that they cause. Among the various HAB-related human diseases, ciguatera has the greatest…

Dinophysis Toxicity Nutritional, environmental, and genetic regulation of toxicity and growth in Dinophysis  The dinoflagellate genus Dinophysis is important from ecological, evolutionary, and public health perspectives.  In the former category, some members of this genus derive their nutrition through a unique, multi-stage process requiring cryptophyte and ciliate prey.  Evolutionarily, the modification of cryptophyte chloroplasts during feeding and their…

Pan Arctic Alexandrium Dramatic changes are occurring in the Arctic, including rapid melting of glaciers, sea ice, and permafrost, and shifts in patterns of rain, snowfall and runoff. With present day warming leading toward massive reductions in ice cover, the biogeographic boundaries of a wide range of marine species at all trophic levels will be greatly…

Investigations of toxic red tides and groundwater nutrient fluxes in the Nauset Marsh Estuary, Cape Cod National Seashore   PIs Donald M. Anderson, David Ralston This project is combining detailed field and laboratory studies to examine the population dynamics of harmful algal blooms (HABs) in the Nauset Marsh Estuary (NME), and relate hydrodynamics, and groundwater…

CiguaHAB: Ciguatera Investigations in the Greater Caribbean Region: Ecophysiology, Population Connectivity, Forecasting, and Toxigenesis.   Ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) is the most common form of phycotoxin-borne seafood illness in the world,  including the Greater Caribbean Region (i.e., the Caribbean, Yucatan, Gulf of Mexico, Florida Keys, and Bahamas), hereafter GCR.  The source of these toxins is…