Have you ever heard about water blooms and microcystin?

Water bloom is a rapid increase in the population and growth of algae (such as cyanobacteria) in bodies of water. Microcystis aeruginosa is one of the most frequently detected cyanobacteria in water blooms. Microcystin is a kind of secondary metabolites of cyanobacteria. It has become a global issue as 66 countries have confirmed the detection of microcystin toxins associated with harmful algal blooms. According to reports, many countries and regions have experienced incidents of illness and even death in fish, livestock, and humans caused by microcystin contamination.

How does it do harm to us?

1. Public health - Microcystin can accumulate in fish bodies and be concentrated in higher nutritional levels, even to humans. Its hazards include liver toxicity, kidney toxicity, reproductive toxicity, neurotoxicity and other toxicities.
2. Ecological impact - water blooms and continuous microcystin toxin pollution may lead to a decrease in certain fish species, while others that are less sensitive may increase, breaking the ecological equilibrium.
3. Economic impact - The death and stunted growth of fish can lead to economic losses in the aquaculture industry.

Direct detection:

Microscopy method and Flow cytometry

Disadvantages: requires professional training and requires high professional level.

Physical detection:

Turbidimeter
Disadvantages: Can not directly reflect the concentration of algae in the water

Chemical test:

Spectroscopy

Disadvantages: expensive and only suitable for professional laboratory

Biological detection:

PCR and ELISA:
Disadvantages: Expensive, unstable and complex operation process

1. Wuhan, also known as the city of a thousand lakes, is home to numerous lakes, big and small. Many plants and organisms rely on these lakes for growth and development.
2. Our biosensor, named "Algalchip," draws inspiration from our investigations with the professors at the Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (Wuhan). During our investigation, we discovered frequent occurrences of algal blooms in Wuhan, caused by Microcystis aeruginosa. Through discussions with our mentors, we learned that C. elegans possesses a sensitive olfactory system, referred to as the N-nose, which enables it to quickly exhibit chemotaxis responses to different substances. Based on this information, we decided to develop a C. elegans-based biochip that can detect algal concentration in water. This biochip offers real-time, rapid, non-toxic, and affordable detection of the ecological environment in lakes, ultimately ensuring the safety of our aquatic food products.

Our goal:

1. We hope to use synthetic biology through C. elegans to design a biological product that can quickly determine the concentration of cyanobacteria and microcystin in the water body and determine the status of the water body, so as to discover and deal with water blooms and microcystin pollution as soon as possible.

For future:

1. Based on our existing research results, we will continue to deepen and improve our design. At the same time, we will continue to pay attention to the problems caused by microcystin and strive to minimize the environmental and food safety hazards caused by microcystin.

1. ZHANG Kun, ZHANG Cunzheng, LIANG Chanjuan. Risk and control of cyanotoxins entering the food chain from eutrophic water[J]. Future Food Science, 2022, 2(2):43-57. DOI: 10. 12281/ffs2708-1893-20220128-004. http://ffs.gzhu.edu.cn/
2. SVIRCEV Z, LALIC D, BOJADZIJA SAVIC G et al. Global geographical and historical overview of cyanotoxin distribution and cyanobacterial poisonings [J]. Archives of Toxicology, 2019,93(9):2429-2481. DOI: 10.1007/s00204-019-02524-4.
3. Microcystin
4. Microcystins in Drinking Water and Their Hazards