Effects of Filtered Stormwater on Zebrafish Sensory Systems
Abstract
The flow of urban stormwater runoff into freshwater habitats has negative effects on the development of aquatic life, particularly on local salmon populations in the Pacific Northwest. In order to prevent the introduction of harmful pollutants into these aquatic habitats there are initiatives in place to filter this stormwater before it reaches sensitive watersheds. While stormwater filtration removes most toxins, there is still evidence that residual toxins can impact fish health. The purpose of this project is to find out how long the filtration systems will last before unwanted pollutants begin to make their way into waterways. We exposed zebrafish to different stormwater samples from various points of time during the life of the filtration system. To further evaluate filtration system longevity, we look at zebrafish sensory hair cells, which represent a sensitive assay for low-level toxicity. Hair cells, found in clusters called neuromasts along the lateral line of the fish, allow for the detection of nearby water movement from biological or abiotic sources. We evaluated the effectiveness of the filtration systems in two ways. First, we placed newly fertilized eggs in various stormwater concentrations over a four-day period to see how the stormwater affected lateral line development. Next, we used five-day-old zebrafish were used to determine how filtered stormwater affects lateral line viability after the system has developed. Our data will show how the filtration columns are working and for how long will they perform to adequate capacity.
About the Presenters
James Foss
James Foss is a born and raised Texas native currently calling the Pacific Northwest home. He traveled all over the world doing humanitarian work between 2009 and 2018 before deciding to go back to school. His passion for helping people led him to pursue a degree in neuroscience, which he is studying as an under grad at Washington State University Vancouver. Before transferring to WSU Vancouver, he was involved in a bee research project at Lower Columbia College. That is where he discovered another passion of his, research. James is currently a Lab Tech II in Dr. Coffin lab.
Garrett Reynolds
My name is Garrett Reynolds and I am a post-baccalaureate student at WSU-Vancouver. I have been at WSU for 2 semesters now and started working for Dr. Allison Coffin’s lab about half way through my first semester. I already hold a Biology degree with minors in Chemistry and Psychology from Carroll College in Helena, Montana. Over the past year I have been taking pre-requisites for Pharmacy school and have applied for several programs in the Northwest. My hope is to be accepted into WSU’s Pharmacy program in Spokane, WA and eventually pursue my PhD in Pharmacology.