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

气泡在海洋表面无处不在。风暴和破碎的海浪携带着水柱中的气泡，这些气泡在上升到水面时收集颗粒，当它们破裂时，收集到的物质以气溶胶的形式释放出来。已经确定的是，这一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其起源点被输送到很远的地方（Aller等人，2005年）。虽然已知病原体是通过这种机制运输的，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 et al., 2004）及其对渔业、水产养殖和人类健康的潜在影响，使得我们必须提高对海洋病原体扩散的理解。本项目旨在首次将实验室气泡破裂实验与分子遗传技术相结合，通过这种机制量化病原体的运输。

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.