Effects of temperature and Hematodinium-sp. infection on Southeast Alaskan Tanner Crabs

This poster was given at a Graduate Student Symposium at the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. It encompasses the overall project outline and goals, as well as some data from our first assembled transcriptome. More information on the project and updates can be found at our website (bittercrab.science) or our podcast (DecaPod) that is now available on iTunes.180 SE Alaskan Tanner crabs (Chionoecetes bairdi) were brought into the NOAA, Juneau lab in the fall of 2017. Their initial infection status with Hematodinium -sp. (Bitter crab disease) was determined using a conventional PCR assay. The crabs were then placed in 9 tanks (10 infected and 10 uninfected in each tank). Three tanks were brought up to warm temperature (10C), three at ambient (6C), and three at cold (4C). The hemolymph was sampled three times over the course of a few weeks.