# Discovery and characterization of new toxins in genomes and metagenomes of bloom-forming cyanobacteria

> **NIH NIH P01** · BOWLING GREEN STATE UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $23,077

## Abstract

Abstract: Discovery and characterization of new toxins
 Microcystis and other cyanobacteria commonly found in cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cHABs)
harbor numerous gene clusters that encode the biosynthesis of diverse and unknown natural products. This
project will test the hypothesis that these gene clusters are responsible for production of variety of unknown
toxins and bioactive compounds that threaten human and environmental health yet remain invisible to current
methods commonly used to assess water quality. The goal is to identify novel toxins and their specific genetic
pathways for biosynthesis and regulation through the study of both pure cultures and consortia of uncultured
microorganisms. Genomes will be assembled from metagenomes and from representative cultures of dominant
bloom-forming cyanobacterial species. High-throughput bioinformatic mining of genomes and metagenomes
will identify and prioritize targets for manual curation and structure prediction. In parallel to these gene-based
studies, analysis of cultures and field samples will be analyzed via (i) high-throughput screening for a variety of
bioactivities at the U-M Center for Chemical Genomics, and (ii) metabolomics studies (conducted by Wilhelm
and Boyer groups), and (iii) assessment of potential biological targets relating to human disease. Taken together,
results on the genetic/biochemical novelty and abundance and expression of genes in Lake Erie blooms will be
used to identify high-priority gene clusters for further biochemical studies via heterologous biosynthetic pathway
expression in genetically tractable host organisms. A next-generation graph database will be developed to
facilitate the synthesis and integrated queries of genetic, experimental, and environmental data.
 This project directly addresses two research priorities listed in the COHH3 RFA: (1) discovery of new
toxins, (2) interrogation of how climate change impacts toxic algal blooms. A broader outcome will be the
development of a versatile and high throughput approach to identify natural products from varied sources of
secondary metabolite gene clusters through the integration of breakthrough technologies in high throughput
metagenomics and bioinformatics with experimental and analytical laboratory approaches. This research project
will be carried out by three labs that have a track record of close collaboration. It will be tightly integrated into
the activities of the proposed center, drawing on infrastructure and resources provide by the center and providing
a number of unique capabilities to the center.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9976541
- **Project number:** 5P01ES028939-03
- **Recipient organization:** BOWLING GREEN STATE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Gregory James Dick
- **Activity code:** P01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $23,077
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-09-30 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9976541

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9976541, Discovery and characterization of new toxins in genomes and metagenomes of bloom-forming cyanobacteria (5P01ES028939-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9976541. Licensed CC0.

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