Can ocean Bubbles spread diseases? The Role of Bubble Burst Aerosols in the Transport of Marine Pathogens

气泡在整个海洋表面无处不在。风暴和破碎的波浪在水柱中夹带气泡，这些气泡在上升到水面时收集颗粒，当它们破裂时，将收集的材料释放为气溶胶。已经确定，这种机制可以将病毒和细菌喷射到低层大气中，在那里病原体可以从它们的起源点运输到很远的地方（阿勒等人，2005).虽然已知病原体通过该机制运输，但气泡破裂气溶胶在病原体运输中的细节和重要性尚未得到很好的理解。最近海洋传染病发病率的增加（Harvell等人，2004）及其对渔业、水产养殖和人类健康的潜在影响，使我们更好地理解海洋病原体的传播至关重要。本项目旨在通过首次将实验室气泡破裂实验与分子遗传学技术相结合来量化病原体通过这一机制的传播。

Bubbles are ubiquitous throughout the ocean surface. Storms and breaking waves entrain air bubbles within the water column that collect particles as they rise to the surface, releasing the collected material as aerosols when they burst. It has been established that this mechanism can eject viruses and bacteria into the lower atmosphere, where pathogens may be transported great distances from their origin point (Aller et al., 2005).Whilst it is known that pathogens are transported through this mechanism, the details and importance of bubble burst aerosols in pathogen transport are not well understood. Recent increases in the incidence of marine infectious diseases (Harvell et al., 2004) and the potential impacts on fishing, aquaculture, and human health make improving our understanding of marine pathogen dispersal essential.This project aims to quantify pathogen transport via this mechanism by combining lab-based bubble bursting experiments with molecular genetic techniques for the first time.