Grant: Collaborative Research and Development Grants

The United States Coast Guard (USCG) recently introduced stringent regulations for the treatment of ballast*water to minimize or eliminate the risk of the introduction of aquatic invasive species via ballast water*transport. Ultra-violet (UV) light irradiation is a useful technology in ballast water treatment systems (BWTSs)*for eliminating aquatic species which could be invasive and harmful to humans and the environment. UV*damages DNA and prevents cellular replication, but the vital stain methods mandated in the USCG protocol*may not detect UV damage in phytoplankton. Alternative culture-based measures of reproductive capacity are*yet to be approved due to concerns over culture-based species biases (i.e., not all species may grow). Rapid and*accurate assays to identify cells that are UV damaged beyond recovery are critical for the acceptance of*UV-based BWTSs for phytoplankton. Hence we propose to develop high-throughput phytoplankton culture*technologies and combine them with genomic/transcriptomic approaches to quantify DNA damage and the*associated disruption of gene transcription at key functional gene loci across a range of gene function classes in*the phytoplankton community typically found in ballast water.*Trojan Technologies (Trojan), headquartered in London, Ontario, Canada is one of the world's leading water*treatment companies. The products and services provided by Trojan companies play vital roles in making*various stages of the water treatment process more effective, efficient and sustainable, ranging from residential*to industrial, municipal and marine applications. The application of UV sterilization technology to BWTSs*represents a potential global market of >$15 billion (USD). We will partner with Trojan to develop the*high-throughput culture protocols in concert with advanced meta-genomic and meta-transcriptomic technology*to validate UV sterilization for BWTSs and thus expand Trojan's market on a global scale and provide the*shipping industry with a practical, safe and cost-effective ballast water sterilization option.