I am not confined to any particular taxon in my research and enjoy a comparative approach to investigating problems. Effects of hypoxia on disease resistance in shrimp. Shrimp in aquaculture are raised in very high densities and are often victims of viral and bacterial pathogens. This project is expanded to look further into the effects of hypoxia on aquacultured shrimp. Effects of hypoxia and air exposure on disease resistance in oysters.
Oysters encounter hypoxic water on a routine basis.
Furthermore, their intertidal habitat exposes them to air on a daily basis. Air exposure causes Eastern oysters to close their shells tightly, nearly completely isolating themselves from the air. Inside the shell, the tissues of the oyster become hypoxic and severely acidic, due largely to the buildup of CO 2 . Thus, air exposure resembles hypoxia in many ways. Graduate student John Dwyer investigated the responses of oysters to air exposure and to the oyster pathogen Perkinsus marinus and found that both caused a significant acidosis in oysters tissues.