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“Unlocking the Secrets of Red Tide: A New Study Reveals Viruses Associated with Harmful Algal Blooms”

Identifying viruses associated with red tide can help researchers forecast the development of blooms and better understand environmental factors that can cause blooms to terminate. The study marks an initial step toward exploring viruses as biocontrol agents for red tide.

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A groundbreaking study led by researchers at the University of South Florida has shed new light on the environmental drivers behind red tide blooms. Published in the American Society for Microbiology’s journal mSphere, the research is the first to identify viruses associated with Karenia brevis, the single-celled organism responsible for causing red tide.

The study, which analyzed water samples collected from red tide blooms off southwest Florida, revealed several viruses – including one new viral species – present in K. brevis blooms. This breakthrough discovery has significant implications for researchers seeking to forecast the development of red tide blooms and understand environmental factors that can cause them to terminate.

“We know that viruses play an important role in the dynamics of harmful algal blooms,” said Jean Lim, lead author of the study and a postdoctoral researcher at the USF College of Marine Science. “Now that we’ve identified several viruses in red tide blooms, we can work to determine which viruses might have an influence on these events.”

To conduct the study, Lim’s team partnered with researchers from the harmful algal bloom monitoring and research program at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) Fish and Wildlife Research Institute (FWRI). The collaboration allowed for the collection of samples during red tide events, which were then analyzed using viral metagenomics – a method pioneered by Mya Breitbart, a Distinguished University Professor at CMS and senior author of the recent study.

“Given the severe consequences of red tide events, it is surprising that no viruses infecting K. brevis have been described,” Breitbart said. “Viral metagenomics is a great tool for exploring viruses associated with these harmful algal blooms.”

Red tide blooms are complex problems driven in part by environmental factors such as ocean circulation, nutrient concentration, and climate change. The neurotoxins emitted by K. brevis can kill marine life, cause respiratory issues for beachgoers, and impact coastal economies based around tourism and fishing.

Current monitoring efforts rely on satellite images of chlorophyll concentrations and field samples taken by FWC-FWRI. Ocean circulation models operated by researchers at CMS can help forecast the movement of red tide blooms. A better understanding of viruses that influence red tide could improve long-term monitoring and forecasting efforts by signaling that a bloom will develop or terminate.

“There may be a correlation between viral abundances and bloom dynamics,” Lim said. “For example, an increase in the number of viruses found in a sample might suggest that a red tide bloom is about to begin, or that it is going to end.”

Since viruses target specific organisms, they may even provide an environmentally-friendly way to manage blooms. “There could be specific viruses that may only infect Karenia brevis,” Lim said. “If we can identify and isolate those viruses, they may be used as a biocontrol agent that won’t have a broader negative impact on marine ecosystems.”

Moving forward, Lim and her colleagues will attempt to determine whether viruses identified in the recent study have an influence on K. brevis or other species that co-occur with red tide blooms. This research has significant implications for the management of red tide blooms and may ultimately lead to new strategies for mitigating their impact on marine ecosystems.

Climate

“Melting Point: How Climate Change Threatens Arctic Fjords’ Carbon-Capturing Ability”

A new study has found worrying signs that climate change may be undermining the capacity of Arctic fjords to serve as effective carbon sinks. The findings suggest that the capacity of polar oceans to remove carbon from the atmosphere may be reduced as the world continues to heat up.

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Melting Point: How Climate Change Threatens Arctic Fjords’ Carbon-Capturing Ability

A recent study by Jochen Knies from the iC3 Polar Research Hub has sounded a warning bell about the impact of climate change on Arctic fjords. The research suggests that these polar oceans, once effective carbon sinks, may struggle to remove carbon from the atmosphere as the world continues to heat up.

The study, which focused on Kongsfjorden in Svalbard, found that rapid changes in the Arctic are transforming vibrant fjord ecosystems. These transformations include a shift in phytoplankton communities due to melting ice and a worrying decline in the capacity of these fjords to sequester carbon.

The Hidden World of Phytoplankton

Phytoplankton, tiny microscopic heroes of our oceans, play a pivotal role in carbon cycling and climate regulation. As the ice retreats, sunlight reaches more of the ocean surface, encouraging phytoplankton to thrive. This newfound abundance feeds the food chain, supporting fish and marine animals.

Jochen Knies, lead author of the study, highlights this dynamic: “The changes we observe suggest that the future of these fjord ecosystems will depend heavily on how well they adapt to a warmer climate.”

Balancing Growth and Sustainability in a Warming Climate

Warmer waters can enhance phytoplankton growth during sunlit summers, presenting an initial opportunity for increased productivity. However, as the waters become stratified, essential nutrients become harder to access, leading to a double-edged sword: while we may see a rise in phytoplankton biomass, the efficiency of carbon capture could decline.

Jochen emphasizes this critical point: “While we anticipate greater primary production, the reality is that warmer, stratified waters could hinder the fjords’ ability to serve as effective carbon sinks.”

The influx of glacial meltwater, like a lifeline for marine life, plays a vital role in reshaping the nutrient landscape of these fjords. As glaciers disappear, this nutrient supply becomes unpredictable, raising concerns about the long-term health of these ecosystems.

Looking Ahead: The Arctic as a Climate Barometer

The Arctic acts as a vital indicator of global climate change. The world’s focus is drawn to these melting ice caps not just for their beauty but because they hold significant lessons about our shared future. Jochen warns, “The future of Arctic fjords reflects the broader climate challenges we face globally.”

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Alternative Fuels

Affordable Hydrogen Fuel Production on the Horizon: Researchers Unveil Breakthrough Strategy

Researchers found a strategy to create catalysts that make the production of hydrogen for clean fuel more efficient and affordable.

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The world is on the cusp of a revolution in hydrogen fuel production. Researchers at Tohoku University have made a groundbreaking discovery that could finally bridge the gap between laboratory experiments and large-scale commercial production. The breakthrough involves a surface reconstruction strategy that utilizes non-noble metal-based cathodes to accelerate the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER).

The HER is a crucial process for creating clean hydrogen fuel, which has the potential to alleviate our climate change crisis. However, scaling up this reaction from lab to factory has been a daunting challenge due to its inefficiency and slowness. The researchers’ findings, published in Advanced Energy Materials on April 3, 2025, offer a promising solution.

By examining transition metal phosphides (TMPs), the research team discovered that adding fluorine (F) to the CoP lattice allows for P-vacancy sites to form on the surface. This leads to an increase in active sites, which speed up the HER reaction. The resulting F modified CoP cathode demonstrated exceptional performance, maintaining approximately 76 W for over 300 hours.

“This is a significant advancement in HER catalyst research,” says Heng Liu from the Advanced Institute for Materials Research (WPI-AIMR). “Our calculated cost of using this method is just $2.17 per kgH2-1 – mere cents over the current production target set for 2026.”

The researchers’ experiment extended beyond lab-scale testing, applying their findings to commercial-scale PEM electrolyzers. This breakthrough has far-reaching implications for the rational design of non-noble metal-based cathodes.

“We’re always thinking about the end goal, which is for research to make its way into everyday life,” says Liu. “This advancement brings us one step closer to designing more realistic options for commercial PEM application.”

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Acid Rain

Less Intensive Farming Works Best for Agricultural Soil

The less intensively you manage the soil, the better the soil can function. Such as not plowing as often or using more grass-clover mixtures as cover crops. Surprisingly, it applies to both conventional and organic farming.

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The less intensively you manage the soil, the better it can function. This is the conclusion from a research team led by the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW). The surprising finding applies to both conventional and organic farming. These important insights for making agriculture more sustainable were published in the scientific journal Science today.

One of the biggest challenges facing agriculture is producing enough food without compromising the soil. Healthy soil has many functions, known as multifunctionality, which must be preserved for sustainable agriculture. A multifunctional soil is essential for sustainable food production, as plants get their nutrients from it. Soil also plays indispensable roles in water storage, climate change mitigation, and disease suppression.

Research on farms across the Netherlands shows that the intensity of tillage determines whether the soil can retain all its functions. Interestingly, the difference between conventional and organic farming has less influence. In both types of agricultural systems, a lot of variation is found in soil tillage and management.

The good news is that conventional agriculture, which makes up most of farms, has a lot to gain from adopting less intensive practices. On all farms, including organic ones, it’s essential not to cultivate the soil too intensively. For example, ploughing less often can be beneficial. Inverting the soil during ploughing is a significant disruption for soil life.

Not only should farmers plough less frequently, but they should also make more use of mixtures of grasses and plants from the bean family, such as clovers. These can be alternated with growing cereals like wheat, barley, spelt, or rye. The research team took samples and carried out measurements at over 50 Dutch agricultural farms on both clay and sandy soils.

The organic carbon present in the soil proved to be the best predictor of soil multifunctionality, and for biological indicators, this was bacterial biomass. The researchers saw the same picture in both soil types – a wide array of soil properties was measured, and farmers shared their farming practices.

A popular term, sustainable intensification, is contradictory to these results. More intensive soil management leads to reduced soil functions and is thus less sustainable. Therefore, the researchers propose a new goal: productive de-intensification. If successful, this will result in more functions from a less intensively cultivated soil while retaining crop yields as much as possible.

These findings are the final result of the Vital Soils project, subsidised by NWO Groen and coordinated by NIOO and Wageningen University & Research. The researchers propose adopting productive de-intensification to make agriculture more sustainable while maintaining or even increasing crop yields.

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