Episode 303: Prescription: Oceans

The oceans are part of America’s newest medical frontier. In Florida, scientists are studying a variety of marine invertebrates which may hold the key to unlocking the secrets of our own biology.

At Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute in Fort Pierce, researchers are testing sea sponges for their potential anti-cancer properties. At The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience in Marineland, experts are taking a closer look at horseshoe crabs to better understand how eyes function and change with age. Scientists there are also studying sea slugs for insights into neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. What clues will these and other simple organisms reveal about the human body? Are there cures that lie beneath the waves?

Experts

Meet the experts featured in this episode.

Episode Photos

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Aplysia californica, or California sea hare, are raised at the National Resource for Aplysia in Miami, Florida.

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Cold saltwater pours into tanks filled with California sea hares at the National Resource for Aplysia in Miami, Florida.

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California sea hares (Aplysia californica) line the walls of the saltwater tanks at the National Resource for Aplysia facility in Miami, Florida.

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Large California sea hares are being raised at the National Resource for Aplysia facility in Miami, Florida.

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California sea hares have a lifespan of approximately one year and can grow as large as the size of a dinner plate.

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Thomas Capo, Founder & Manager of the National Resource for Aplysia, at his lab in Miami, Florida.

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Thomas Capo, Founder & Manager of the National Resource for Aplysia, at his lab in Miami, Florida.

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Florida Institute of Technology graduate student Casey Boleman points to horseshoe crab eggs which are being raised in the lab.

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Videographer and Editor Sean Hickey films while Florida Institute of Technology graduate student Casey Boleman points to horseshoe crab eggs.

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Videographer and Editor Sean Hickey films Florida Institute of Technology graduate student and horseshoe crab expert Casey Boleman.

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Florida Institute of Technology graduate student Casey Boleman holds the exoskeleton of a small horseshoe crab.

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FIT experts use horseshoe crabs for studies that examine “the chemical and physical cues postlarvae and juvenile crabs use to locate and settle in estuarine nursery habitats."

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A wild horseshoe crab near Key Largo, Florida.

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Videographer Jeremy Nicholson films a wild horseshoe crab in the waters off Key Largo, Florida.

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Videographer Sean Hickey and “Prescription: Oceans” Producer Kandra Velez prepare for a sit-down interview with Richard Tankersley, Ph.D. from the Florida Institute of Technology.

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Videographer and Editor Sean Hickey films Esther Guzman, Ph.D. as she observes a three-dimensional image of cancer cells.

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Videographer and Editor Sean Hickey gets a close up of Esther Guzman’s, Ph.D. computer screen, which displays a three-dimensional image of cancer cells.

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Barbara Battelle, Ph.D. observes proteins from the compound eye of a horseshoe crab on the computer screen.

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Barbara Battelle, Ph.D. from The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience observes sections of tissue taken from the compound eye of a horseshoe crab.

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Barbara Battelle, Ph.D. from The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience points to the compound eye of a horseshoe crab.

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Barbara Battelle, Ph.D. holds a horseshoe crab in her wet lab at The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience in Marineland, Florida.

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Horseshoe crabs at The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience are studied for their unique sense of vision.

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Crew members Jeremy Nicholson (left), Kandra Velez (center), and Veronique Koch (right) during an interview with Leonid Moroz, Ph.D. (background) at The Whitney Laboratory.

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Leonid Moroz, Ph.D. from The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience prepares to observe sea slug neurons using a microscope.

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Leonid Moroz, Ph.D. from The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience holds a large California sea slug.

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Sunlight and fresh seawater are used to grow red macroalgae, food for the California sea hares raised at the National Resource for Aplysia facility in Miami, Florida.

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Videographer and Editor Sean Hickey films Florida Institute of Technology graduate student Casey Boleman as she grabs a container filled with horseshoe crab eggs.

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At the Florida Institute of Technology horseshoe crab eggs are maintained on warm, moist paper towels to mimic natural conditions found in nests.

Special Thanks:

Hilton St. Augustine Historic Bayfront
32 Avenida Menendez
St. Augustine, FL 32084
(904) 829-2277

Holiday Isle Oceanfront Resort
860 A1A Beach Blvd
St. Augustine Beach, FL 32080
(904) 471-2555

The Pelican Inn
99340 Overseas Highway
Key Largo, FL 33037
(305) 451-3576

The Sandhurst Hotel & Suites
Beach Resort
1230 Seaway Drive
Hutchinson Island, FL 34949
(866) 395-7263

Image Credits

Changing Seas would like to thank the following individuals and institutions who kindly allowed their footage, images and other media to be used in this production:

Don Blis
Bill Branson
Dr. Gorden Cragg
Dr. Cecil Fox
Dr. Dwight Kaufman
Nancy Lankford
Dr. Lance Liotta Laboratory
George McGregor
The National Cancer Institute

Greg Breese
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Thomas Capo
National Resource for Aplysia

Brian Cousin
Dr. Esther Guzmán
Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute at FAU

Jessica King
Marine Photobank

Tom Kleindinst
Marine Biological Laboratory

Sarah Koenig

Rodolfo Llinas
New York University

Larissa Graham

John Griffin
Medical Tribune/Columbia University

Dr. Leonid Moroz
The Whitney Laboratory for Marine
Bioscience at UF

Dr. Joseph R. Pawlik
UNCW Center for Marine Science

Dr. Arthur Toga
Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, USC

Sven Zea
The Sponge Guide

Associates of Cape Cod, Inc.

Charles River

Bette Jensen
James Gathany
Dr. Steve Kraus
CDC

Delaware Public Archives

National Eye Institute

National Human Genome Research Institute

National Institutes of Health/Department of Health and Human Services

NBR Worldwide

NOAA/OER

The Rockefeller University

Episode 303: Prescription: Oceans

Experts

Barbara Battelle, Ph.D.

Thomas Capo

Esther Guzmán, Ph.D.

Peter McCarthy, Ph.D.

Leonid Moroz, Ph.D.

Richard A. Tankersley, Ph.D.

Amy Wright, Ph.D.

Special Thanks:

Image Credits

Web Extras

Horseshoe Crabs

Funding for this episode of Changing Seas was provided by: