COMB Receives Major Grant to Study Pfiesteria (ECOHAB)

COMB Receives Major Grant to Study Pfiesteria

October 5, 1998 -- The University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute's Center of Marine Biotechnology has been awarded $1 million for the first two years of a five-year grant for Pfiesteria-related research from ECOHAB, a consortium of federal agencies. As a result of the grant, COMB will be able to accelerate its study of the molecular biology of Pfiesteria and related microorganisms that have been implicated in significant fish kills in coastal areas during the past few years.

COMB's research will focus on answering fundamental questions regarding identification of Pfiesteria-complex dinoflagellates (PCDs), the role of bacterial interactions, and factors leading to toxin production. The answers to these questions are necessary to understand how to predict and control PCD-induced fish kills and resulting human maladies.

"COMB is a leader in the state of Maryland's program of Pfiesteria research," says Dr. Peter P. McCann, UMBI interim president. "By culturing Pfiesteria cells in its laboratories, COMB is providing a significant service to researchers around the country, enabling them to develop methods for early detection of Pfiesteria-like dinoflagellates and their toxins in the environment."

A central part of COMB's program is the Dinoflagellate Culture Core Facility. (Dinoflagellates are aquatic organisms commonly known as "algae.") This core will maintain PCD stocks and provide cells to investigators in the individual COMB projects as well as to scientists nationwide who are collaborating in the ECOHAB community.

The fundamental data from COMB's research also may be applied to many other toxic dinoflagellates and related harmful algal species. Molecular probes to be developed will have the potential to detect the presence of PCDs, distinguish between the numerous species, and determine whether PCD toxins are present both in the wild and in the laboratory.

Dr. Yonathan Zohar, professor and director of COMB, notes that the center's work in developing proper interventions and minimizing the impact of Pfiesteria on the fishing industry "will have an important and positive impact on the state of Maryland's environment as well as the seafood and tourism industries. We are excited about applying our expertise to understanding the mechanisms by which these microorganisms act upon fish and the coastal environment."

One of several institutions in the University System of Maryland that is receiving grants from the ECOHAB program, COMB also is receiving $295,000 in matching funds from the Maryland Department of the Environment in response to outbreaks of Pfiesteria-like microorganisms in the state's waterways.

Under the ECOHAB grant, COMB projects will:

concentrate on all toxic dinoflagellates associated with Maryland-Chesapeake Bay fish lesions and fish kills;
direct analysis specifically at the biological factors that control these dinoflagellate populations and their behavior;
develop probes to detect and monitor dinoflagellates associated with fish lesions and fish kills in the environment; and
develop biosensors -- biological agents used to detect chemical compounds -- that are specific to harmful dinoflagellates and bacteria associated with dinoflagellates.

Principal investigators on the ECOHAB grant are Zohar, program head, and Drs. Gerardo Vasta, Robert Belas, and Allen Place, all at COMB.

The grant will allow COMB to expand the instrumental role it already has taken on research in this area. "Because of our mission and experience, we responded immediately when there were outbreaks of Pfiesteria in the Chesapeake Bay last year," adds Zohar. "We mobilized our faculty, equipment and other resources to study the Maryland toxic dinoflagellates. Specifically, we collected samples of the microorganisms in the sites of the outbreaks, and we are currently culturing them in biosafety level 3 labs constructed specifically for this purpose."

The goal of the COMB Pfiesteria research is to determine the cause of the fish lesions found associated with many of the Maryland fish kill sites, Zohar notes. "To do so we must begin by understanding the fundamental biology of these dinoflagellates. Through such knowledge will come the resulting answers for detection and prevention."

ECOHAB, which stands for "Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms," includes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the National Science Foundation (NSF), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Office of Naval Research (ONR), USDA and NASA. The consortium emphasizes coastal ocean science research because of the growing need to understand the basic biology of the cells in harmful algal blooms, thus enabling researchers to predict bloom development, persistence, and toxicity. ECOHAB expects these findings to lead to faster, more effective ways of monitoring and managing environmental conditions to reduce bloom impacts related to fish kills and other environmental problems.