Sonication of bacteria, phytoplankton and zooplankton: Application to treatment of ballast water.

We investigated the effect of high power ultrasound, at a frequency of 19 kHz, on the survival of bacteria, phytoplankton and zooplankton, in order to obtain estimates of effective exposure times and energy densities that could be applied to design of ultrasonic treatment systems for ballast water. Efficacy of ultrasonic treatment varied with the size of the test organism. Zooplankton required only 3-9s of exposure time and 6-19 J/mL of ultrasonic energy to realize a 90% reduction in survival.

Demonstration of toxicity to fish and to mammalian cells by Pfiesteria species: comparison of assay methods and strains.

Toxicity and its detection in the dinoflagellate fish predators Pfiesteria piscicida and Pfiesteria shumwayae depend on the strain and the use of reliable assays. Two assays, standardized fish bioassays (SFBs) with juvenile fish and fish microassays (FMAs) with larval fish, were compared for their utility to detect toxic Pfiesteria. The comparison included strains with confirmed toxicity, negative controls (noninducible Pfiesteria strains and a related nontoxic cryptoperidiniopsoid dinoflagellate), and P.

Comparative impacts of two major hurricane seasons on the Neuse River and western Pamlico Sound ecosystems.

Ecosystem-level impacts of two hurricane seasons were compared several years after the storms in the largest lagoonal estuary in the U.S., the Albemarle-Pamlico Estuarine System.