The bloom-forming alga Microcystis produces the hepatotoxin microcystin-LR. Removing this toxin from drinking water requires expensive treatments; current analytical methods are incapable of real-time monitoring. Crayfish are resistant to microcystin-LR toxicity and respond well to operant conditioning. I hypothesized that crayfish could sense and be trained to respond to microcystin-LR via electroshocks for use as biomonitors. In the microcystin detection experiment, Procambarus clarkii moved away from microcystin-LR (p < 0.001) while Orconectes rusticus did not respond (p = 0.28). Neither species could be reliably trained to move to the tank’s center when microcystin-LR was present. To understand why, I tested Procambarus clarkii’s ability to respond to a neutral scent using positive and negative reinforcement. They associated the scent with positive reinforcement (p < 0.001) but not negative reinforcement (p = 0.21), suggesting crayfish may be incapable of associating scents with negative tactile stimuli.
","abstract_html":"<p>The bloom-forming alga Microcystis produces the hepatotoxin microcystin-LR. Removing this toxin from drinking water requires expensive treatments; current analytical methods are incapable of real-time monitoring. Crayfish are resistant to microcystin-LR toxicity and respond well to operant conditioning. I hypothesized that crayfish could sense and be trained to respond to microcystin-LR via electroshocks for use as biomonitors. In the microcystin detection experiment, Procambarus clarkii moved away from microcystin-LR (p < 0.001) while Orconectes rusticus did not respond (p = 0.28). Neither species could be reliably trained to move to the tank’s center when microcystin-LR was present. To understand why, I tested Procambarus clarkii’s ability to respond to a neutral scent using positive and negative reinforcement. They associated the scent with positive reinforcement (p < 0.001) but not negative reinforcement (p = 0.21), suggesting crayfish may be incapable of associating scents with negative tactile stimuli.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["McRobb, Kayla"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Open Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"Biology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Ulrich Reinhardt-Segawa","Steven Francoeur","Cara Shillington"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2016,"date_issued":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:27Z","subjects":["biomonitor","conditioning","crayfish","microcystin","microcystin-LR","Biology","Life Sciences"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/849","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Ulrich Reinhardt-Segawa","Steven Francoeur","Cara Shillington"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["McRobb, Kayla"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-03-14T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Biology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["biomonitor","conditioning","crayfish","microcystin","microcystin-LR","Biology","Life Sciences"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/849"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The bloom-forming alga Microcystis produces the hepatotoxin microcystin-LR. Removing this toxin from drinking water requires expensive treatments; current analytical methods are incapable of real-time monitoring. Crayfish are resistant to microcystin-LR toxicity and respond well to operant conditioning. I hypothesized that crayfish could sense and be trained to respond to microcystin-LR via electroshocks for use as biomonitors. In the microcystin detection experiment, Procambarus clarkii moved away from microcystin-LR (p < 0.001) while Orconectes rusticus did not respond (p = 0.28). Neither species could be reliably trained to move to the tank’s center when microcystin-LR was present. To understand why, I tested Procambarus clarkii’s ability to respond to a neutral scent using positive and negative reinforcement. They associated the scent with positive reinforcement (p < 0.001) but not negative reinforcement (p = 0.21), suggesting crayfish may be incapable of associating scents with negative tactile stimuli.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Crayfish as a biomonitor for the algal toxin microcystin-LR"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Ulrich Reinhardt-Segawa","Steven Francoeur","Cara Shillington"],"dc:creator":["McRobb, Kayla"],"dc:date.available":["2018-03-14T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The bloom-forming alga Microcystis produces the hepatotoxin microcystin-LR. Removing this toxin from drinking water requires expensive treatments; current analytical methods are incapable of real-time monitoring. Crayfish are resistant to microcystin-LR toxicity and respond well to operant conditioning. I hypothesized that crayfish could sense and be trained to respond to microcystin-LR via electroshocks for use as biomonitors. In the microcystin detection experiment, Procambarus clarkii moved away from microcystin-LR (p < 0.001) while Orconectes rusticus did not respond (p = 0.28). Neither species could be reliably trained to move to the tank’s center when microcystin-LR was present. To understand why, I tested Procambarus clarkii’s ability to respond to a neutral scent using positive and negative reinforcement. They associated the scent with positive reinforcement (p < 0.001) but not negative reinforcement (p = 0.21), suggesting crayfish may be incapable of associating scents with negative tactile stimuli.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/849"],"dc:subject":["biomonitor","conditioning","crayfish","microcystin","microcystin-LR","Biology","Life Sciences"],"dc:title":["Crayfish as a biomonitor for the algal toxin microcystin-LR"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Biology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:27Z"}