In most coastal marine environments, phytoplankton plays a major role in primary production. Understanding the patterns and processes of biodiversity in relation to primary production is fundamentally important for sustainable management of ecosystems, like Laguna Madre (LM) and the Coastal Bend Estuary (CBE) , located in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) . Coastal areas like LM and the CBE are of great economic and ecological importance. Laguna Madre, for example, is considered one of the most productive bay systems in Texas , producing more fish than Galveston Bay ( DeYoe 2003 ). Coastal areas like CBE , however, are rapidly degrading due to increasing human pressures, such as pollution, and changing land and sea use. In late 1989 a brown tide bloom made history by thriving from 1989 -1997 to what is believed to be one of the longest continual algal blooms in history ( DeYoe 2003 ).

As human populations continue to grow, increased anthropogenic loading from various sources (agricultural waste, fertilizers, sewage, etc.) exacerbate eutrophication of coastal waters. Pollution of estuaries is known to cause harmful algal blooms (HABs). These toxic species often cause extensive die-offs of fin- and shellfish, sea grasses, and other plankton. Less known are the physiological processes that decrease HAB growth and reproduction; some hypotheses indicate lysis due to viral pathogens. An alternative possibility is that mortality is caused by factors internal to the cells. Such information is vital for improving the management of estuaries and developing strategies to protect and restore its living marine resources.

Current projects include: (1) characterization of environmental factors (e.g. nitrate, phosphate, etc.) that promote growth and reproduction of phytoplankton; and (2) metabolism of bloom-forming algae in estuarine environments.