Genomic, transcriptomic and culture-based assessment of UV irradiation effects on phytoplankton viability: applications for ballast water treatment systems

美国海岸警卫队(USCG)最近出台了严格的压载水处理条例，以最大限度地减少或消除通过压载水运输引入水生入侵物种的风险。在压载水处理系统(BWTSS)中，紫外光照射是一种有效的去除对人类和环境有害的入侵水生生物的技术。紫外线破坏DNA并防止细胞复制，但USCG协议中规定的重要染色方法可能无法检测到浮游植物中的紫外线损害。由于担心基于文化的物种偏见(即，并非所有物种都可以生长)，尚未批准以文化为基础的生殖能力替代措施。快速、准确地鉴定细胞受到紫外线破坏而无法恢复，对于接受基于紫外线的BWTS对浮游植物来说是至关重要的。因此，我们建议开发高通量浮游植物培养技术，并将它们与基因组/转录学方法相结合，以量化DNA损伤和在浮游植物群落中典型的压载水中发现的一系列基因功能类别的关键功能基因座上的基因转录中断。特洛伊技术公司(Trojan Technologies)总部位于加拿大安大略省伦敦，是世界领先的水处理公司之一。特洛伊木马公司提供的产品和服务在使水处理过程的各个阶段更加有效、高效和可持续方面发挥着至关重要的作用，范围从民用到工业、市政和海洋应用。紫外线杀菌技术在垃圾处理厂的应用代表着150亿美元的潜在全球市场。我们将与特洛伊合作开发高通量培养协议，结合先进的元基因组和元转录技术，验证BWTS的紫外线灭菌，从而在全球范围内扩大特洛伊的市场，为船舶行业提供实用、安全和成本效益高的压载水灭菌选择。

The United States Coast Guard (USCG) recently introduced stringent regulations for the treatment of ballastwater to minimize or eliminate the risk of the introduction of aquatic invasive species via ballast watertransport. Ultra-violet (UV) light irradiation is a useful technology in ballast water treatment systems (BWTSs)for eliminating aquatic species which could be invasive and harmful to humans and the environment. UVdamages DNA and prevents cellular replication, but the vital stain methods mandated in the USCG protocolmay not detect UV damage in phytoplankton. Alternative culture-based measures of reproductive capacity areyet to be approved due to concerns over culture-based species biases (i.e., not all species may grow). Rapid andaccurate assays to identify cells that are UV damaged beyond recovery are critical for the acceptance ofUV-based BWTSs for phytoplankton. Hence we propose to develop high-throughput phytoplankton culturetechnologies and combine them with genomic/transcriptomic approaches to quantify DNA damage and theassociated disruption of gene transcription at key functional gene loci across a range of gene function classes inthe phytoplankton community typically found in ballast water.Trojan Technologies (Trojan), headquartered in London, Ontario, Canada is one of the world's leading watertreatment companies. The products and services provided by Trojan companies play vital roles in makingvarious stages of the water treatment process more effective, efficient and sustainable, ranging from residentialto industrial, municipal and marine applications. The application of UV sterilization technology to BWTSsrepresents a potential global market of >$15 billion (USD). We will partner with Trojan to develop thehigh-throughput culture protocols in concert with advanced meta-genomic and meta-transcriptomic technologyto validate UV sterilization for BWTSs and thus expand Trojan's market on a global scale and provide theshipping industry with a practical, safe and cost-effective ballast water sterilization option.