Vince Lovko 

Research interests

Dinoflagellates of the Pfiesteriaceae  

My PhD work has centered around the mechanisms of pathogenicity in Pfiesteria and Pfiesteria-like dinoflagellates. These heterotrophic dinoflagellates have been implicated in major fish kills, fish lesions and human health impacts in estuarine systems of the mid-Atlantic U.S. Our work has determined that these dinoflagellates are capable of acting as micropredators on live fish in laboratory bioassays. This pathogenic mechanism can result in fish mortalities equal to what has been reported for purportedly toxic cultures and provides an alternative explanation to the observations of fish mortality in laboratory assays that had previously been ascribed to a Pfiesteria toxin. These findings were relevant because the methodology used to implicate Pfiesteria as a toxin-producing organism were not able to distinguish between alternate pathogenic mechanisms. Although it is unlikely that micropredation plays any significant role in the health of wild fishes, our work demonstrates that this behavior is common, although highly variable, among dinoflagellates related to Pfiesteria. Due to continued reports of Pfiesteria toxicity, we continue to attempt to better characterize their behavior and determine the relative factors that allow for micropredatory behavior and for the variability observed between species and strains to further understand the relationship between these organisms and any role they may play in fish and human health.

Karlodinium veneficum (coming soon)

Cochlodinium polykrikoides (coming soon)