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The Ocean’s Role in Human
Health
David Yun
March 22, 2006
Structure of Website
Health
Benefits
Dangers
Drugs
Waterborne diseases
Harmful Algal Blooms
Resource found in the ocean
Causes, methods of transmission
Dinoflagellate
Studied in labs
Causes of Bloom
Produced in Pharmaceutical companies
Impact on community
Medicine given to the public
Directly to human health
Effect on seafood industry
Hazardous to Your Health
Waterborne Diseases
 The ocean is used for many things by the San Diego
community: recreation, transportation, food, and many
other things. But the result of this, and the integration of
waste, both human and industrial, that is poured into the
ocean leads to pollution that damages the ocean, and
ultimately puts our health at risk. Viruses like Hepatitis A
and bacteria like vibrio cholerae are transmitted by the
consumption of undercooked or raw sea food, and water
ingestion. In recent months, it’s been noted that during
times of heavy rainfall, sewage lines are apparently
close enough to the water runoffs to the ocean to
spillover, leading to waste being dumped out into the
ocean.
Harmful Algal Blooms
 Any La Jolla resident with familiar with the local beach
knows what “Red Tide” is, but may not know what
causes it. Red tide is a marine algal bloom that is caused
by a species of dinoflagellates (microscopic organisms),
that congregate in the millions, turning the water red.
 Blooms occur naturally, but have become much more
commonplace due to warmer ocean temperatures and
human activity that place excess nutrients in the ocean,
providing the dinoflagellates with an abundance of
nutrients to expand to such numbers.
Red Tide
Dinoflagellate
Noctiluca scintillans
Noctiluca Scintillans
 The culprit behind the red tide you see right here in La
Jolla is Noctiluca Scintillans, a bloom-forming species
that has been found in many parts of the world, from
England to Japan to our beaches here in San Diego.
 Algal blooms have been known to be toxic to humans,
but this species has only been associated with fish and
marine invertebrate mortality events.
 The species does not produce a toxin, but it has been
found to accumulate toxic levels of ammonia that are
excreted into surrounding waters which acts as the killing
agent to marine life, having a detrimental impact on the
fisheries in the area.
Life Cycle of a Harmful Alga
Life Cycle
How it affects us
How It Affects Us
 The ocean ecosystem is represented in the form of a food
web that ultimately affects us. Harmful algal blooms (HABs)
begin on a microscopic level and work up the food chain from
phytoplankton to zooplankton, to fish, to bigger fish, and
finally to marine mammals, birds, and humans.
 Although the species common in San Diego is not known for
its toxicity, HABs over the world are known for their toxins that
cause a variety of illnesses, and in some cases, even death.
Amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP) can cause permanent
short-term memory loss and death. Paralytic shellfish
poisoning (PSP) causes tingling, numbness, drowsiness and
other symptoms, and can be fatal within 24 hours of eating
affect shellfish.
How It Affects Us (cont.)
 Harmful Algal Blooms occur all over the world and
impact economies. In a recent estimate, HABs costed
the U.S. 450 million dollars in public health, commercial
fishery and recreation. A better understanding of the
biology and ecology of HABs is need before scientists
can control or even accurately predict when one will
occur.
 There are many poorly understood factors that lead to
algal blooms and scientists continue to study the
patterns and causes of HABs, while in the meantime
HABs continue to affect commercial industries, publich
health, and the local marine environment.
The Ocean: Our Friend
Phases of Medicine
Ocean Resource
Research Lab
Pharmeceutical Company
The Public
The Ocean Resource
 The Ocean covers 70% of the planet’s surface,
but it’s biomedical potential has largely gone
unexplored. The average person probably
pictures the ocean as a world that is irrelevant
and has no use to them besides recreation and
fishing. But in the past few years, research by
Scripps’ very own William Fenical has shown
that sediments in the deep ocean are significant
biomedical resources for microbes that produce
antibiotic molecules.
Decrease of terrestrial sources
 Sharp decrease in
terrestrial
resources
 Steady increase in
marine resources
Dr. William Fenical
 Director of the Center
for Marine
Biotechnology and
Biomedicine (CMBB)
here at Scripps
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Fenical
 With the increasing resistance of bacteria to
existing antibiotics, the need for new sources of
medicine has been essential.
 Fenical’s research was successful in culturing
microorganisms, identifying them by genetic
methods, and screening their metabolic products
for anticancer and antibiotic properties.
 The result of his studies showed that of 100
strains of the organism Salinospora, 80%
produced molecules that inhibit cancer growth.
Research Closer to Home
 Scripps professor Margo Haygood discovered the gene “bryA” that could
help produce anticancer agents discovered in the marine invertebrate
Bugula Neritina. Animals like Bugula Neritina live in a symbiotic relationship
with the bacteria that act as a chemical defense mechanism for the host
animal.
 Haygood and her laboratory found that bacteria from Bugula neritina were
the source of bryostatins, a family of chemical compounds being closely
studied for their potential as anticancer pharmaceuticals.
 The problem with producing these byostatins was that the bacteria could not
be grown in labs, and to collect large numbers of these animals would be
harmful to the ecosystem. Haygood’s research was aimed at cloning the
gene bryA, which is a catalyst for bryostatin formation.
 Now that the gene has been isolated, the next and current step in
Haygood’s research has been to use bryA to develop bryostatin and
derivatives to use in the fight against cancer.
Professor Margo Haygood
Bugula neritina
One More Clip
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From the Lab to the Company
 William Fenical’s discoveries were patented by
the University of California San Diego and
licensed to Nereus Pharmaceuticals Inc., a
biotech company in San Diego, and are nearing
the closing stages of developing new drugs from
the ocean sediment source
 Margo Haygood’s work has led to a U.S. patent.
The licensing rights have been bought by
CalBioMarine Technologies, Inc., also a
company located in San Diego. Bryostatin is
now in its clinical trail phase for use in humans.
Significance?
 The impact on the immediate La Jolla community is significant.
Biotech companies have been flourishing all over San Diego due to
the work and discovery of research institutions like Scripps, which
continues to lead the way in marine biotechnology and biomedicine.
Discoveries like those of Fenical and Haygood continue to add
prestige and regard to the La Jolla community and for the type of
work that is done.
 More importantly, research like this may have monumental impacts
on not only the local community, but ultimately the global as well.
Cancer and its multitude of forms are currently the leading causes of
death in the United States. But if the ocean becomes a main focus
of biomedical research, then more and more drugs can be
discovered to fight not only cancer, but the myriad number of other
diseases and conditions that exist in the world.