Title of Dissertation / Thesis: INTERACTIONS OF VIBRIO CHOLERAE SEROGROUPS O1 AND O139 AND COPEPODS Tonya Kafí Rawlings, Doctor of Philosophy, 2005 Dissertation / Thesis Directed By: Dr. Rita R. Colwell, Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics Vibrio cholerae O1 El Tor and O139 Bengal have caused cholera epidemics throughout Bangladesh and elsewhere in the world with a seasonal regula...

As for most other organisms, genome size in zooplankton differs widely. This may have a range of consequences for growth rate, development, and life history strategies, yet the causes of this pronounced variability are not settled. Here we propose that small genome size may be an evolutionary consequence of phosphorus (P) allocation from DNA to RNA under P deficiency. To test this hypothesis we...

Mesozooplankton communities in the mesooligotrophic Gulf of Aqaba, Northern Red Sea, were investigated over a 2 years period (2005–2007) with emphasis on the trophodynamic relations among different taxonomic groups ranging from primary consumers to carnivorous predators. Based on stable isotope analyses, we present evidence for a strong contribution of ‘new’ nitrogen mainly derived from the uti...

Finding mates can pose a particular problem for obligately sexual planktonic organisms, resulting in a variety of adaptations to ensure sufficient mating. Several types of mate-finding behavior have been observed in marine copepods, but the one most effective at low population density, following a pheromone trail, has not been observed in freshwater copepods. Using threedimensional (3D) videogr...

Vitellogenin (VTG) has been widely used as a biomarker of estrogenic exposure in fish, leading to the development of standardized assays for VTG quantification. However, standardized quantitative assays for invertebrate, particularly crustacean, lipovitellin (also known as vitellin [VTN]) are lacking. In this study, a fluorescence-based VTN enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was develope...

The present study concerns seasonal variations, correlation coefficient and biodiversity indices of zooplanktons during January-December, 2008 in the Harsool-Savangi dam, Aurangabad, India. A total of 25 genera were recorded of which 10 were Rotifers, 8 Cladocerons, 5 Copepods and 2 Ostracods. Present study revealed maximum percentage wise compositions of Rotifers at north site were 58.28%, Cla...

Copepods are one of the most abundant metazoans in the marine ecosystem, constituting a critical link in aquatic food webs and contributing significantly to the global carbon budget, yet molecular mechanisms of their gene expression are not well understood. Here we report the detection of spliced leader (SL) trans-splicing in calanoid copepods. We have examined nine species of wild-caught copep...

Life-cycles of polar herbivorous copepods are characterised by seasonal/ontogenetic vertical migrations and diapause to survive periods of food shortage during the long winter season. However, the triggers of vertical migration and diapause are still far from being understood. In this study, we test the hypothesis that acidic pH and the accumulation of ammonium (NH4 (+)) in the hemolymph contri...

Cyclopoid copepods and mosquito larvae were surveyed in southwestern Louisiana rice fields. Almost every rice field had a natural population of Mesocyclops ruttneri, Acanthocylops vernalis, or Macrocyclops albidus. Judging from the abundance of pupae, 29% of the fields were responsible for virtually all Anopheles quadrimaculatus production, apparently because larval mortality suppressed product...

Microscopic plastic debris, termed “microplastics”, are of increasing environmental concern. Recent studies have demonstrated that a range of zooplankton, including copepods, can ingest microplastics. Copepods are a globally abundant class of zooplankton that form a key trophic link between primary producers and higher trophic marine organisms. Here we demonstrate that ingestion of microplastic...