Retrospective eDNA assessment of potentially harmful algae in historical ship ballast tank and marine port sediments

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dc.contributor.authorShaw, J.L.A.
dc.contributor.authorWeyrich, L.S.
dc.contributor.authorHallegraeff, G.
dc.contributor.authorCooper, A.
dc.date.issued2019
dc.description.abstractMicroalgal bloom events can cause major ecosystem disturbances, devastate local marine economies, and endanger public health. Therefore, detecting and monitoring harmful microalgal taxa is essential to ensure effective risk management in waterways used for fisheries, aquaculture, recreational activity, and shipping. To fully understand the current status and future direction of algal bloom distributions, we need to know how populations and ecosystems have changed over time. This baseline knowledge is critical for predicting ecosystem responses to future anthropogenic change and will assist in the future management of coastal ecosystems. We explore a NGS metabarcoding approach to rapidly identify potentially harmful microalgal taxa in 63 historic and modern Australian marine port and ballast tank sediment samples. The results provide a record of past microalgal distribution and important baseline data that can be used to assess the efficacy of shipping guidelines, nutrient pollution mitigation, and predict the impact of climate change. Critically, eDNA surveys of archived sediments were able to detect harmful algal taxa that do not produce microscopic fossils, such as Chattonella, Heterosigma, Karlodinium, and Noctiluca. Our data suggest a potential increase in Australian harmful microalgal taxa over the past 30 years, and confirm ship ballast tanks as key dispersal vectors. These molecular mapping tools will assist in the creation of policies aimed at reducing the global increase and spread of harmful algal taxa and help prevent economic and public-health problems caused by harmful algal blooms.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityJennifer L. A. Shaw, Laura S. Weyrich, Gustaaf Hallegraeff, Alan Cooper
dc.identifier.citationMolecular Ecology, 2019; 28(10):2476-2485
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/mec.15055
dc.identifier.issn0962-1083
dc.identifier.issn1365-294X
dc.identifier.orcidCooper, A. [0000-0002-7738-7851]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/119452
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherJohn Wiley & Sons
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/LP0991985
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP170102261
dc.rights© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1111/mec.15055
dc.subjectNGS sequencing
dc.subjectenvironmental DNA
dc.subjecthistorical sediment
dc.subjectmetabarcoding
dc.subjectpaleogenomics
dc.subjectshipping
dc.titleRetrospective eDNA assessment of potentially harmful algae in historical ship ballast tank and marine port sediments
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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