Collaborative Research: Parasitism of Bloom-Forming Dinoflagellates: Host Specificity and Ecological Implications

合作研究：水华甲藻的寄生：宿主特异性和生态意义

• 批准号: 9813542
• 负责人: John Gunderson
• 金额: $ 18.5万
• 依托单位: Tennessee Technological University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 1998
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1998-06-01 至 2002-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9813542&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Parasitism; Bloom; Forming

Increasing concern over the global spread of red tides produced by toxic and non-toxic dinoflagellates has focused research interest on physical and biological interactions that influence the accumulation, persistence, and demise of bloom-forming species. The harmful effects imposed by red tides on marine fauna and associated risks to public health and commercial fisheries have also prompted interest in means to detect, predict, and potentially control harmful algal blooms. Recent studies have shown that microparasites, including viruses, bacteria, and protozoa, are abundant in marine environments. Furthermore, parasite-induced mortality of bacterioplankton and phytoplankton can cause population level changes in host abundance on time scales of hours to days. Infection of red-tide dinoflagellates by their parasitic relative Amoebophrya ceratii has been linked to rapid declines in host populations. This parasite has also been implicated as an important factor in preventing bloom formation. while all such infections of free-living dinoflagellates have been attributed to a single species of parasite, recent data suggest that A. ceratii is a species complex composed of multiple host-specific parasites. This research will further the understanding of red-tide ecology by considering the interplay between host specificity and parasitism of bloom-forming dinoflagellates in Chesapeake Bay. It will also help define the complexity of host-parasite interactions in planktonic systems and provide new insight on the role of parasitism in microbial food-web dynamics. Five specific hypotheses will be tested using state-of-the-art morphological and molecular methods.

随着有毒和无毒甲藻引起的赤潮在全球范围内的蔓延，人们对影响水华形成物种的积累、持续和消亡的物理和生物相互作用的研究兴趣日益增加。赤潮对海洋动物的有害影响以及对公共卫生和商业渔业的相关风险也促使人们对检测、预测和潜在控制有害藻华的方法产生兴趣。近年来的研究表明，海洋中存在大量的微生物，包括病毒、细菌和原生动物， 环境. 此外，委员会认为， 寄生虫引起的 死亡率 浮游细菌和浮游植物的大量繁殖可引起宿主丰度在数小时到数天的时间尺度上的种群水平变化。 赤潮甲藻被其寄生亲属角状变形虫感染与宿主种群的迅速下降有关。这种寄生虫也被认为是防止水华形成的一个重要因素。尽管所有这些对自由生活的甲藻的感染都归因于一种寄生虫，但最近的数据表明，A. Ceratii是由多种宿主特异性寄生物组成的种复合体。 本研究将进一步了解赤潮生态学的考虑之间的相互作用，寄主特异性和水华形成甲藻的寄生在切萨皮克湾。它还将有助于定义宿主-寄生虫相互作用的复杂性，并为寄生在微生物食物网动力学中的作用提供新的见解。 五个具体假设 将使用最先进的形态学 和分子方法。