ECOHAB: Kamykowski_D- Florida Process Cruise 11/16-19/1998- Karenia brevis counts, biochemistry and behavior (NODC Accession 0000533)

Abstract: Water bottle samples were collected from selected depths (variable with station) at 44 stations in the study area. Coulter counts in the 14 to 28 um size class were routinely determined for comparison with the microscope counts provided by other researchers on the cruise. At six stations, water samples were filtered through a 40 um Nytex mesh and centrifuged for 10 minutes at 1200 x g and then frozen to isolate Karenia brevis cells for subsequent analysis (pg cell-1) of cellular lipid, free amino acid, and protein. The biochemical determinations were performed within two weeks of collection at Kamykowski's laboratory at NCSU.

Purpose: To verify that appropriately constrained Coulter counts can be used to monitor the abundance of Karenia brevis in natural water columns and that biochemical analyses of dense natural population of Karenia can provide interpretable data on the biochemical composition.