VIMS

Projects

The mission of the Department of Aquatic Health Sciences is to identify and detect toxicological, pathobiological and biochemical agents in the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed that affect the health of important aquatic organisms and surrounding human populations. Our research determines the fates of contaminants, pathogens and essential nutrients in estuarine and marine environments and their effects on important species. A diverse faculty of environmental chemists, toxicologists, ecotoxicologists, biochemists, immunologists, microbiologists, and pathobiologists collaborate to achieve these goals. Research questions are pursued at all levels of biological organization from the molecular and cellular to the organismal and populational. Our activities reflect a strong commitment to provide technical advice to regulate and protect of the waters and natural resources of the Commonwealth.