Mucosal transcriptome of oil-exposed mahi

Crude-oil derived polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a pervasive environmental pollutant with well-established detrimental effects on marine organism health. Following large-scale oil spills, which introduce high amounts of PAHs into the marine environment, there is a critical need for noninvasive sampling methods to assess environmental exposure without further perturbations to already-disturbed populations. To test the efficacy of epidermal mucus mRNA as a source for noninvasive sampling, juvenile mahi-mahi (Coryphaena hippurus) were exposed to control seawater or high energy water accommodated fractions (HEWAF) of Deepwater Horizon surface oil for 48 hours.