Two scientists from the Korean Ocean Research and Development Institute (KORDI) visited the NOAA/NOS/NCCOS Marine Biotoxins Program laboratory in Charleston, SC April 2 – 6 to develop a detection method for the fish-killing dinoflagellate Heterocapsa. This organism causes devastating fish kills in neighboring Japanese waters and is considered a high potential threat to the economically [...]
Lake Erie is the shallowest and smallest of the Great Lakes by volume and is heavily influenced by agricultural and urban runoff. It is subject to periodic outbreaks of harmful algal blooms (HABs) and hypoxia. These problems were identified as the highest priority of the International Joint Commission (IJC) as it drafts guidelines and targets [...]
Dozens of experts from Scotland, Denmark, Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. convened in Silver Spring on March 20-21 to share insights into marine cage culture’s effects on the environment and the latest strategies to reduce them. To support growth of the U.S. aquaculture industry while maintaining environmental sustainability, Federal, state and local managers and regulators exchanged [...]
Regulatory scientists from Nicaragua, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Columbia, candidates for reference laboratories, completed two weeks of formal training for high throughput detection of toxins responsible for paralytic shellfish poison (PSP) and ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP). The course of study was provided by National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) scientists at Charleston, SC [...]
NCCOS scientists developed a detection method for paralytic shellfish toxins in shellfish. This method is now approved by the Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC International) as an Official Method of Analysis. AOAC International approval allows this method to be used as a regulatory test in shellfish commerce worldwide. These scientists spent 10 years on [...]
A team of scientists and engineers met January 21-22 in Charleston, SC for a strategy session to implement an emerging sensor design for detecting algal biotoxins. The new platform uses proprietary waveguide technology to simultaneously detect multiple toxins at concentrations 10- to 100-fold lower than similar, highly portable tests currently available. Increased sensitivity reduces the [...]
They are the seas’ silent killers, toxin-laden patches of algae that amass along coastal shores and wreck havoc on marine ecosystems. They appear with no warning and outbreaks have become more frequent. Virtually every coastal country in the world has suffered from their effects. These are harmful algal blooms (HABs), more commonly known as “red [...]
Seagrass meadows provide homes, food and nurseries for many marine creatures, in particular serving as feeding grounds for dugongs and western rock lobsters (Panulirus Cygnus) and breeding grounds for many commercially important fish species. They are also important for water quality, filtering water and serving as an indicator of the health of the marine ecosystem, [...]