Project description: Microbial flora in a shark's gut
Sharks were important to Icelanders in earlier centuries, the fish oil from the liver was exported and the processed (crushed and dried) meat was used for food. However, there is very little scientific knowledge on shark action and it is not known that other nations make food from shark in this way. The cleaning is considered necessary to detoxify the shark because it is considered poisonous when fresh. In the project, two experiments will be organized to evaluate the effect of seasonality on efficacy and the effect of using fresh or frozen/thawed shark for efficacy.
The goal of the project is to acquire new knowledge about the role of microorganisms in the cooling process, and the master's project is part of a larger project where, in addition to microbiological measurements, chemical and sensory measurements were used to evaluate the changes that occur in the shark while the effect is taking place. This new knowledge could be important in order to reduce fluctuations in product quality and standardize the production of white shark. Microbial measurements will be made and cultivated strains will be analyzed by MaldiTof Biotyper and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The diversity of uncultivated microorganisms will be examined by isolating DNA from the biomass and 16S rRNA gene amplified by PCR technology and the genes sequenced by Illumina NGS technology (MiSeq). Genomes of new and interesting strains will be sequenced and described as needed.
Supervisor:
Viggó Þór Marteinsson
Co-supervisor:
Sigurlaug Skírnisdóttir