MAHON, B.C.*; NEIGEL, J.E.; Univ. of Louisiana at Lafayette; Univ. of Louisiana at Lafayette: A real-time PCR assay for detection and quantification of crustacean larvae in plankton samples

The study of larval dispersal at sea has historically been a labor intensive process involving long and tedious hours of sorting and attempts at identification of larvae based on morphological characters. Recent research however has shown the feasibility of detection and quantification of even single larvae of crustaceans or fish from plankton samples with molecular techniques. Our study utilizes species-specific dual labeled oligonucleotide probes in a real-time PCR assay for detection and quantification of multiple crustacean species from plankton samples collected in coastal areas of central California. Results of these tests are compared to actual larval counts from replicate splits from the same plankton tows to test for: 1) species-specificity; 2) sensitivity limits; and 3) quantitative accuracy. Results of these tests will be presented along with potential applications.