Date:
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Speaker:
Dr. Eric J. Schott, Ph.D., Research Assistant Professor, IMET-University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science
Time and location:
4:00 PM - EPI Seminar Room 150 or view from your desktop: http://seminar.epi.ufl.edu/ This seminar will cover the (re)discovery of a fatal reovirus that is associated with most of the mortality of blue crabs in soft-shell production.
At least two other putative RNA viruses were visualized using this approach, which hinges on the assumption that RNA viruses all must have a double stranded intermediate, even if transiently. dsRNA enrichment can be a powerful tool for investigation of possible viruses, and should be applicable to any host, and to metagenomic studies.The search for viruses in blue crab is part of a program to develop molecular tools for monitoring all major blue crab pathogens. These tools will enable a more comprehensive study of the role of diseases in natural mortality in blue crab life history.