Harmful algal bloom-forming diatom Pseudo-nitzschia on the Northeast US Shelf

The goal of this study was to compare the composition of Pseudo-nitzschia assemblages in Narragansett Bay, RI to those on the Northeast U.S. Continental Shelf in winter and summer (2018-2023). Pseudo-nitzschia are a neurotoxin-producing genus of diatom that cause harmful algal blooms, though species vary in ability to produce toxin. This study used high throughput sequencing of Pseudo-nitzschia-specific 18S-5.8S rDNA internal transcribed spacer region 1 (ITS1) amplicons, a method that can discriminate nearly all known species, on time series environmental samples from Narragansett Bay and the Northeast U.S. Shelf in collaboration with the Narragansett Bay Long Term Plankton Time Series and the Northeast U.S. Shelf Long-Term Ecological Research program.