Biology and microbiology laboratory

IMDEA WATER SOLUTIONS

These techniques can have the following applications:

• Analysis of a large set of biological indicatorscoming from:
  • Surface water: reservoirs, lakes, rivers
  • Groundwater (inland and coastal aquifers)
  • Groundwater-dependent ecosystems (hyporheic river areas)
• Identification ofcyanobacteria, cyclopoids and ostracod specimensin the lowest level taxonomic range.
• Aquaculture and ecotoxicology testing(bioassays, chronic, acute and sublethal testing) for integrated biological monitoring of water quality, as bacteriological and physiochemical test support.
• Biodegradation of cyanotoxinsand diversityof bio-digesting bacterial populations using standard gene markers and metagenomic studies.
• Development of molecular tools to monitor cyanobacterial bloomsand their toxins in surface waters.
• Developing a technological solutionfor biological control and removal of cyanotoxins in water treatment.

EQUIPMENT

Ecohydrology Unit: fully equipped with high quality optical microscopes, available with high-resolution photomontage systems to facilitate identifications in invertebrate aquaculture, hatcheries and aquariums.

Cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins unitwith an incubator for cyanobacteria and bacteria cultures and a Buchi rotary evaporator with cooling system for extraction of cyanotoxins, and solid phase extraction equipment for concentrating toxin extracts.

Molecular Biology Unitequipped with gel documentation system for electrophoresis; real-time PCR, AB7300, for quantitative and qualitative gene studies; nanophotometer, Época, measuring DNA concentrations in volumes as low as 2l; gel electrophoresis equipment, Biorad, for DNA and RNA electrophoresis; PCR thermocycler, to perform the PCR reaction, and DNA extraction homogenizer, Precellys, for extracting DNA from bacterial cells.

IMPLEMENTATION SECTOR

• Catchment Organizations
• Territorial Environmental Services
• Councils
• Local authorities
• Management companies