On Hawaiian reefs, the fast-growing, invasive algae Gracilaria salicornia overgrows coral heads, restricting water flow and light, thereby smothering corals. Field data shows hypoxic conditions (dissolved oxygen (DO2) < 2 mg/L) occurring underneath algal mats at night, and concurrent bleaching and partial tissue loss of shaded corals. To analyze the impact of nighttime oxygen-deprivation on cor...

The likelihood of invasion success increases when non-native species engage in mutualisms with a native or non-native species. Mutualisms formed between native and nonnative species have been termed ’novel mutualisms’, and research in terrestrial systems has advanced our understanding of the ecological processes involved in their formation and persistence. However, documentation of novel mutual...

Rising sea levels and salinization of groundwater due to global climate change result in fast-dwindling sources of freshwater. Therefore, it is important to find alternatives to grow food crops and vegetables. Halophytes are naturally evolved salt-tolerant plants that are adapted to grow in environments that inhibit the growth of most glycophytic crop plants substantially. Members of the Salico...

glasswort (Salicornia fruticosa) is the most widely distributed species of the perennial genus of glasswort in Egypt and it shows great biotechnological potential as a salt-water irrigated crop. Oil analysis of Salicornia fruticosa seeds was carried out in the current study. Chloroform and methanol mixture (2:1 v:v) extraction yielded maximum oil content from seeds (28.59%). The physical and ch...

As part of an extensive DNA-based floristic survey of marine macroalgae in Canadian waters, an unexpected sequence for a Gracilaria sp. was generated from British Columbia. Before further molecular analyses and corresponding morphological/anatomical observations this mystery sequence was temporarily entered into our database as Gracilaria BCsp. Continued sampling uncovered this species from fou...

The plasma membrane Na + /H + -antiporter SOS1 is essential for salt tolerance in plants. In Chapter 4, we observed a ten-fold higher constitutive expression of SOS1 in the highly salt tolerant salt-accumulating halophyte Salicornia dolichostachya in comparison with a lower inducible SOS1 expression in its glycophytic family member Spinacia oleracea. The objective of this study was to investiga...