91制片厂

91制片厂 scientists are one step closer to being able to predict when oysters in the Great Bay Estuary may be at risk of being infected with a bacteria that has sickened consumers throughout the Northeast.

91制片厂 scientists have developed a predictive modeling tool capable of estimating the likelihood of听Vibrio parahaemolyticus听presence in coastal New Hampshire oysters.听V. parahaemolyticus听is the most common bacterial infection acquired from seafood in the world. There are an estimated 45,000 cases each year in the United States. In recent years, there has been an increase in the incidence of shellfish contamination, which has caused costly recalls of shellfish and shellfish bed closures in Connecticut and Massachusetts. Some strains of the microbe cause disease and others do not.

鈥淭his research represents a significant advance in our understanding of what听environmental conditions are related to the incidence of听V. parahaemolyticus, a human pathogenic bacterium,听in New Hampshire oysters. We found that not only water temperature and salinity are important, but also chlorophyll, which is a measure of how much phytoplankton biomass is present in the water overlying natural听oyster beds,鈥� said Stephen Jones, research associate professor of natural resources and one of the scientists involved with the study.

Scientists analyzed oyster samples from two sites collected over seven years in the Great Bay Estuary for听V.听parahaemolyticus听abundance, noting significant relationships with various biotic and abiotic factors. Results show that including chlorophyll听a听concentration in their analysis improved their ability to predict the likelihood of听V.听parahaemolyticus听in the estuary. Their ongoing work builds from this and is focused on making even more accurate predictions.

鈥淚n the last five years,听V. parahaemolyticus听has become an increasingly significant pathogen to humans who consume raw or undercooked shellfish in the Northeast United States. Where in the past cases of illness were quite rare, there have now been outbreaks of illness caused by this species in Long Island Sound and the southern Gulf of Maine in Massachusetts. In New Hampshire, there has yet to be a reported case of illness from this pathogen associated with shellfish consumption, but our collective studies at 91制片厂 are tracking how its presence is changing in New Hampshire coastal waters and shellfish,鈥� Jones said.

鈥淭his research will enable shellfish managers and growers, and听public health agencies to anticipate risk conditions when extra measures should be taken during听shellfish harvesting to prevent illnesses. The present guidelines used in New England have been somewhat inadequate, as all illnesses have not been prevented,鈥� he said.

91制片厂 researchers have been tracking听Vibrios听in the Great Bay Estuary for 10 consecutive years, and previously in the 1990s and 2000s. In the 1980s, 91制片厂 scientists were the first to detect听Vibrio vulnificus听鈥� a potentially more serious species of听Vibrio听鈥� in the Great Bay estuary. In a major breakthrough in shellfish management and disease prevention, in 2015 91制片厂 scientists announced they discovered a new method to detect the specific听Vibrio parahaemolyticus听strains that cause human illness in New England oyster beds. The new patent-pending detection method is a significant advance in efforts to identify shellfish harboring disease-carrying strains of听Vibrio parahaemolyticus.听This latest research represents an initial step to study Vibrio populations at this more detailed scale within听a听shellfish harvest area-sized study area to help inform larger regional efforts to develop risk forecasting tools for the region.

The researchers present their findings in听听in PLoSONE. In addition to Jones, who also is associate director of NH Sea Grant, researchers involved in this study include Erin Urquhart with the Northeast Center for Vibrio Disease and Ecology at 91制片厂 and a former postdoctoral researcher with the 91制片厂 Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Biomedical Sciences; Jong Yu, Brian Schuster, and Ashley Marcinkienwicz with the Northeast Center for Vibrio Disease and Ecology at 91制片厂; Cheryl Whistler, associate professor of molecular, cellular, and biomedical sciences at 91制片厂 and the Northeast Center for Vibrio Disease and Ecology at 91制片厂; and Vaughn Cooper, affiliate faculty member with 91制片厂 Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Biomedical Sciences and associate professor of microbiology and molecular genetics at the University of Pittsburgh. Whistler and Jones also are researchers with the NH Agricultural Experiment Station.

This material is based upon work supported by the NH Agricultural Experiment Station, through joint funding of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award numbers 233555 and 1004199, and the state of New Hampshire. This work also is supported by funding from the National Science Foundation EPSCoR Program and New Hampshire Sea Grant College Program.

Founded in 1887, the听听at the听听is 91制片厂鈥檚 original research center and an elemental component of New Hampshire's land-grant university heritage and mission. We steward federal and state funding, including support from the听, to provide unbiased and objective research concerning diverse aspects of sustainable agriculture and foods, aquaculture, forest management, and related wildlife, natural resources and rural community topics. We maintain the Woodman and Kingman agronomy and horticultural farms, the Macfarlane Greenhouses, the Fairchild Dairy Teaching and Research Center, and the Organic Dairy Research Farm. Additional properties also provide forage, forests and woodlands in direct support to research, teaching, and outreach.