Finding species from the traces they leave
Provincial grant funds DNA testing that allows for animals and plants to be located without being disturbed
Atest for the presence of selected animals and plants using traces of the genetic material they leave behind could help to protect endangered species. Prof. Caren Helbing, of the biochemistry and microbiology department at the University of Victoria, is part of an effort to develop a test for the presence of any specific species using DNA the creatures or plants leave in the environment — for example, in rubbed-off skin cells or on fallen leaves.
“We can do it with any species which has DNA, which is everybody,” Helbing said in a telephone interview.
The method allows, say, a fisheries biologist testing for a salmon species in a stream to scoop up a water sample for testing, instead of seeking out and catching test specimens as proof of its presence. Or, forestry or mining companies that must test for the presence of an endangered species of salamander, for example, can gather samples of soil to test for the creature’s DNA.
It means those companies don’t have to send out surveyors to lift up rocks, logs or other surface litter to capture the salamander of concern, disrupting or destroying the creature’s habitat in the process.
Helbing’s work, done alongside business collaborators Hemmera Envirochem and Maxxam Analytics, has been awarded a $185,000 grant. A B.C. Ignite award, the money was given out by the B.C. Innovation Council, a provincial agency working to help new technologies reach the market.
Helbing said environmental DNA can help track the movement of invasive species. With a clear picture of the expansion of the range of an unwanted creature or plant, an effective defence can be applied before an invader is established.
“Whenever you have a full-out establishment of a species, it’s generally too late,” she said.
Crucial to Helbing’s environmental DNA sampling method is the introduction of several innovations that increase the reliability of each test on each sample. Fewer false positives or false negatives are the result.
“These innovations have been key to be able to interpret the results with any confidence,” Helbing said.
Another UVic researcher to be awarded a B.C. Ignite grant is biomedical engineer Stephanie Willerth, whose work was awarded $139,700.
Willerth’s work, with Aspect Biosystems, uses 3D printing technology to print out human neural tissue.
It’s hoped the new techniques will lead to the creation of small platforms of living human cells that can be used to test new drugs for incurable neurological disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease.