Using Molecular Methods to Search for Hematodinium sp. and Reolike Virus of Blue Crab Callinectes sapidus

The blue crab Callinectes sapidus supports fisheries in Atlantic coastal areas. This is being hindered however, due to the apparent spread of the dinoflagalllete Hematodinium sp. and reovirus BCRV1. In Georgia specifically, outbreaks of these diseases seem to be affecting crab population dramatically. In July 2010, collection of juvenile blue crabs took place in Country Club Creek in Savannah , GA. Juveniles were then examined for the prevalence of the two pathogens using commercial kits such as Qigen DNAeasy or MoBio for DNA, TRIzol reagent for RNA, and purity and concentration determination using the Nanodrop Spectrophotometer. Polymerase chain reaction based assays were then used to detect these pathogens. After these processes were completed neither of the two pathogens were present in the crabs, but more assessments are being done throughout 2011 to net positive results.