Summary
Major: Microbiology & Immunology, Ecology
- Faculty Mentor: Dr. Jamie Voyles
- Research Topic: Understanding the Impact of Salinity on Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis Growth
- New Scholar: 2023 Cohort
- Graduating with a Baccalaureate Degree: 2027
Abstract
Recent expansions of towns in Panama often contribute to increases in water salinity, which may contribute to microbial growth in urbanized streams. This rapid increase in salinity can contribute to the decline of ecologically-important amphibians. A rapid decline of amphibians poses a risk to agriculture production and human health. Amphibians play a key role in the ecosystem, helping maintain low levels of mosquitos and insects thereby minimizing the transmission of diseases between insects and humans. A global fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), has been accelerating the global decline of amphibians. Bd is a fungus that inhibits amphibians to thermoregulate, breath, and hydrate themselves, eventually causing mortality (Chytrid Fungus (Bd) in Amphibians | Wisconsin DNR, n.d.). Therefore, I propose to investigate how salinity affects the growth of Bd by collecting 6 water samples from streams in Panama (3 rural, 3 urban). I will then grow Bd (from a strain) in the laboratory and subject cultures to varying salinity concentrations to assess growth and better understand the responses of this catastrophic pathogen. I predict that water samples from urban streams will have greater levels of salinity. Therefore, greater levels of salinity will augment the growth of Bd resulting in greater mortalities of amphibians. Upon completion of this project, I plan to further investigate other abiotic factors that may alter Bd growth.