Testing susceptibility of cockles to transmissible cancer after transplantation into an exposed region

Led by Michael Metzger, Pacific Northwest Research Institute
Collaborators include Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Suquamish Tribe, Puget Sound Restoration Fund

This study proposes to investigate a potential cause for declines in Basket cockles (Clinocardium nuttallii), which are an important part of the diet and culture of the Suquamish Tribe and many other coastal tribes from Washington to Alaska. They will specifically test for a transmissible cancer called disseminated neoplasia or bivalve transmissible neoplasia, which has affected transplanted cockles at several sites in Puget Sound, complicating recovery. 

Researchers propose to transplant cockles from a site where the cancer is believed to NOT exist to a site on the Suquamish Reservation where it does exist. They will look at survival and transplanted cockles will be measured after two months of exposure at the new site. They will non-lethally extract hemolymph from a subset and will use histological and qPCR methods to determine the prevalence of disease. This will determine whether the prevalence of disease and disease progression suggest that the cockles are more susceptible to disease than endogenous cockles or cockles from other locations in Puget Sound. The results will greatly benefit future cockle restoration work.