Primary Investigator: Michael Travisano
Co-Investigators: Jordan Sivigny (Undergraduate Research Scholar)
Industry Partners: NA
Award Type: Undergraduate Research Scholar
Problem: Cyanotoxins are water-soluble, thermostable proteins that can persist in Minnesota drinking water sources.
Solution: We will investigate cyanotoxin function using a biological-based predation assay. We will use commercially available ELISA kits that exist for specific cyanotoxins.
Impact: A link between microbial predation and the production of cyanotoxins by cyanobacteria will aid in developing new ecological criteria for predicting cyanotoxin prevalence in water sources inhabited by cyanobacteria. The resultant impacts on population dynamics will allow for the determination of an association between predation and cyanotoxin production.