# Research Project 1

> **NIH NIH P01** · FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $110,390

## Abstract

Ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP), the most common form of finfish-borne disease globally, affecting tens of
thousands of people each year, is caused by dinoflagellates in the genus Gambierdiscus. Our goal is to
investigate how climate change, particularly warming sea surface temperatures, will influence the geographic
extent and population dynamics of toxin-producing Gambierdiscus spp. in the Greater Caribbean Region
(GCR), and use these findings to model ciguatoxin fluxes into coral reef food webs under predicted climate
change scenarios. This proposal builds on several important findings from our previous work, which includes
the determination that toxicity in the GCR is tightly linked to just a few Gambierdiscus species, and that the
most toxic species G. silvae may be the “super bug” on Caribbean reefs, responsible for the bulk of toxin
entering the food web even at low cell densities. This breakthrough discovery presents a fortuitous opportunity
to study the physiology, toxicity, and ecology of this highly toxigenic species, including its temperature
tolerances and the manner in which it disperses to and colonizes other regions. The scientific premise of this
project is that only through a deep understanding of the autecology of the most toxic species and their direct
and indirect responses to climate change (e.g., warming sea surface temperatures and coral reef impacts,
respectively), will we (society) be able to properly assess and respond to the impact of climate change on CFP
incidence in the GCR. We will use innovative experimental approaches to examine the impacts of temperature,
including field investigations of local adaptation within and dispersal between Gambierdiscus sub-populations
using RADseq (Restriction site-Associated DNA sequencing) and analyses of the spatio-temporal dynamics of
toxin-producing Gambierdiscus spp. In addition to investigating broad-scale geographic patterns, we will use
natural temperature differences between closely adjacent sites to explore the effects of temperature extremes
and variability on the composition of Gambierdiscus communities. These natural experiments will be
complemented by laboratory studies to determine resilience of toxin-producing Gambierdiscus spp. to thermal
stress under variable temperature regimes. Together, these data will reveal how temperature-driven
partitioning of Gambierdiscus communities operates at local, regional, and seasonal scales. This has major
implications with respect to the effects of climate-driven warming on the extent and prevalence of ciguatera
toxicity in the GCR. The resulting data, along with that produced in RP2 and RP3, will enable us to further
develop and calibrate our ciguatoxin flux model, which is the first-ever computational model of ciguatoxin fluxes
in the food web. This modeling effort will push forward the boundaries of predictive capacity for CFP events
and public health protection.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9979878
- **Project number:** 5P01ES028949-03
- **Recipient organization:** FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Michael Parsons
- **Activity code:** P01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $110,390
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** — → —

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9979878

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9979878, Research Project 1 (5P01ES028949-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9979878. Licensed CC0.

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