This is a week-long intensive course focusing on diseases affecting marine organisms, with emphasis placed on familiarizing clinicians and veterinary scientists with approaches for observing signs of infection and disease. The coursework includes lectures providing a broad background in pathogens and diseases affecting marine fish and shellfish and labs giving hands-on experience with classic (cytology and histopathology) and modern diagnostic (PCR and next-generation sequencing) tools. Exercises and in-class discussions apply diagnostic tools to interpret signs of infection and disease in coastal North Carolina marine organisms, draw inferences about disease processes in marine ecosystems, and identify key questions for future research. This course divides time between field trips to nearby coastal environments, the NC State University College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Center for Marine Sciences and Technology.
Syllabus
Assigned Readings
Lab Protocols
Data
Lab Exercise: pathology and Disease Impact case studies
Lab Exercise: oysters and Perkinsus marinus
Lab Exercise: blue crabs and Hematodinium
Lab Exercise: 16S amplicon sequence analysis
Lectures
2. Coral health
3. Pathogens of bivalves and gastropods
4. Crustacean viruses and Hematodinium
5. Finfish pathogens