{"id":1916,"date":"2023-11-01T19:45:48","date_gmt":"2023-11-01T19:45:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/live-usc-dornsife.pantheonsite.io\/uscseagrant\/?page_id=1916"},"modified":"2026-03-16T15:38:46","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T15:38:46","slug":"detecting-danger","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/uscseagrant\/detecting-danger\/","title":{"rendered":"Detecting Danger"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--accordions \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--accordions\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      <div class=\"header-container\">\n\n                  \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          Advancing portable detection capabilities of harmful algal bloom species in California waters\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n      \n                  \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  <p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">California routinely experiences annual toxic harmful algal blooms (HABs) that impact marine wildlife, threaten human health, and affect the economy through losses and closures within commercial and recreational fisheries. However, genetic detection of microorganisms in the field has long been hampered by issues like cumbersome and expensive platforms and time lags for sample transport. University of Southern California (USC) Sea Grant has funded a study to investigate a new portable detection technology (Freedom4) that would provide near real-time results to aid natural resource managers in identifying threats, mitigating risk, and monitoring the progression of HAB events. Specifically, this project will transition traditional, lab-based, quantitative genetic assays onto a portable detection platform to enable onsite detection of eleven HAB species that threaten California coastal ecosystems.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n      \n      \n    <\/div>\n  \n  \n  \n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <h3><b>Key Results<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Multiple new assays were developed for many harmful algal bloom species of concern for wildlife and human health.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">100 cultures of target and non-target species were successfully cultured in developing assays <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Project Impacts &amp; Application:<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Presented at Moss Landing Marine Labs; University of Technology, Sydney; California Molecular Methods Working Group; The Pacific Plankton Program at Cabrillo College<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A subset of the collected cultures have been sequenced and deposited to a publicly available repository (GenBank).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PI Bowers was invited to be part of an international committee as a HAB species expert and demonstrated the handheld qPCR machine for the first time; this group is developing a guidance manual on the transfer of this technology into management for the international HAB community<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The team is using this technology for an Environmental-Protection-Agency-funded project and is using a number of the assays for weekly monitoring in Central California.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">Part of an international qPCR HAB monitoring group sharing application, technique, and challenges<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0A short film was made about our work: <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=1CSe1cY5-3E&amp;t=130s\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=1CSe1cY5-3E&amp;t=130s<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Principal Investigators:<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Holly Bowers, Ph.D., San Jose State University<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jason Smith, Ph.D., San Jose State University<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Funding: <\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">California Ocean Protection Council, 2018-2021<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><b>Additional Info and Publications<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:<\/span><b>\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/mlml.sjsu.edu\/ebl\/holly-a-bowers\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">https:\/\/mlml.sjsu.edu\/ebl\/holly-a-bowers\/<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/mlml.sjsu.edu\/ebl\/ca-seagrant-award-for-portable-qpcr-assays-for-habs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/mlml.sjsu.edu\/ebl\/ca-seagrant-award-for-portable-qpcr-assays-for-habs\/<\/a><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nishimura, Tomohiro; Murray, J. Sam; Boundy, Michael J.; Balci, Muharrem; <\/span>Bowers, Holly A.; Smith, Kirsty F.<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">; Harwood, D. Tim; Rhodes, Lesley L. Update of the planktonic diatom genus pseudo-nitzschia in aotearoa new zealand coastal waters: Genetic diversity and toxin production. Toxins. 2021;13(9):637-. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www-ncbi-nlm-nih-gov.libproxy2.usc.edu\/pmc\/articles\/PMC8473122\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">doi:10.3390\/toxins13090637<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"cta-link\" href=\"\/uscseagrant\/publications-database\/\">Access our Publications Database to view publications from this project or other related topics<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n                        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--photo-wall \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--photo-wall\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      <div class=\"heading-container\">\n                  \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          Project Photo Gallery\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n      \n          <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"photos-container\">\n\n    \n    <div class=\"grid-sizer\"><\/div>\n    <div class=\"gutter-sizer\"><\/div>\n\n      \n                                                \n                <div class=\"photo\">\n\n            \n                \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img decoding=\"async\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/uscseagrant\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2023\/11\/Fig_1-540x0-c-default.png\"\n                    \n        \n                  alt=\"Comparison of a field deployable bead beating tool versus a lab based standard unit.\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n\n                          <a href=\"#photo-1632654819\" class=\"photo-trigger\" aria-label=\"Expand to view image and text\">\n                <svg version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" viewBox=\"0 0 35 35\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 35 35\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><path fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" fill=\"#000000\" d=\"M28,7v7.9h-2.6l0-3.4l-4.3,4.3c-0.3,0.3-0.6,0.4-0.9,0.4s-0.7-0.1-0.9-0.4c-0.5-0.5-0.5-1.3,0-1.9l4.3-4.3h-3.4V7H28z M7,28v-7.9h2.6v3.4l4.3-4.3c0.5-0.5,1.3-0.5,1.9,0c0.5,0.5,0.5,1.3,0,1.9l-4.3,4.3h3.4V28H7z\"\/><\/svg>\n              <\/a>\n                      <\/div>\n                <div class=\"photo\">\n\n            \n                \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img decoding=\"async\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/uscseagrant\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2023\/11\/IMG_8654-540x0-c-default.jpg\"\n                    \n        \n                  alt=\"net tow samples recieved from MBARI to ascertain presence of Pseudo-nitzschia via qPCR\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n\n                          <a href=\"#photo-432676246\" class=\"photo-trigger\" aria-label=\"Expand to view image and text\">\n                <svg version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" viewBox=\"0 0 35 35\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 35 35\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><path fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" fill=\"#000000\" d=\"M28,7v7.9h-2.6l0-3.4l-4.3,4.3c-0.3,0.3-0.6,0.4-0.9,0.4s-0.7-0.1-0.9-0.4c-0.5-0.5-0.5-1.3,0-1.9l4.3-4.3h-3.4V7H28z M7,28v-7.9h2.6v3.4l4.3-4.3c0.5-0.5,1.3-0.5,1.9,0c0.5,0.5,0.5,1.3,0,1.9l-4.3,4.3h3.4V28H7z\"\/><\/svg>\n              <\/a>\n                      <\/div>\n                <div class=\"photo\">\n\n            \n                \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img decoding=\"async\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/uscseagrant\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2024\/05\/NEWS_May2024_KylaKelly_5-540x0-c-default.jpg\"\n                    \n        \n                  role=\"none\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n\n                          <a href=\"#photo-831770667\" class=\"photo-trigger\" aria-label=\"Expand to view image and text\">\n                <svg version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" viewBox=\"0 0 35 35\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 35 35\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><path fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" fill=\"#000000\" d=\"M28,7v7.9h-2.6l0-3.4l-4.3,4.3c-0.3,0.3-0.6,0.4-0.9,0.4s-0.7-0.1-0.9-0.4c-0.5-0.5-0.5-1.3,0-1.9l4.3-4.3h-3.4V7H28z M7,28v-7.9h2.6v3.4l4.3-4.3c0.5-0.5,1.3-0.5,1.9,0c0.5,0.5,0.5,1.3,0,1.9l-4.3,4.3h3.4V28H7z\"\/><\/svg>\n              <\/a>\n                      <\/div>\n      \n      <\/div>\n\n            <div id=\"photo-1632654819\" class=\"photo-lightbox lity-hide\">\n        <div class=\"text-container\">\n          \n                          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  <p>Comparison of a field deployable bead beating tool versus a lab based standard unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n          \n                  <\/div>\n\n        \n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img decoding=\"async\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/uscseagrant\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2023\/11\/Fig_1-1080x0-c-default.png\"\n                    \n        \n                  alt=\"Comparison of a field deployable bead beating tool versus a lab based standard unit.\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n                <div id=\"photo-432676246\" class=\"photo-lightbox lity-hide\">\n        <div class=\"text-container\">\n          \n                          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  <p>Net tow samples recieved from MBARI to ascertain presence of Pseudo-nitzschia via qPCR.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n          \n                  <\/div>\n\n        \n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img decoding=\"async\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/uscseagrant\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2023\/11\/IMG_8654-1080x0-c-default.jpg\"\n                    \n        \n                  alt=\"net tow samples recieved from MBARI to ascertain presence of Pseudo-nitzschia via qPCR\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n                <div id=\"photo-831770667\" class=\"photo-lightbox lity-hide\">\n        <div class=\"text-container\">\n          \n                          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  <p>Holly Bowers is sampling in the field. (Photo credit: R. Clarke)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n          \n                  <\/div>\n\n        \n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img decoding=\"async\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/uscseagrant\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2024\/05\/NEWS_May2024_KylaKelly_5-1080x0-c-default.jpg\"\n                    \n        \n                  role=\"none\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n      \n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-content-detail.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1916","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Detecting Danger - 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