Dr Christopher Izzo

Biography/ Background

University of Adelaide – Faculty of Sciences Divisional Scholarship for postgraduate study (2006 – current)

 

Supervised by A/Prof Bronwyn Gillanders (Adelaide University) & Prof Stephen Donnellan (South Australian Museum)

 

Telomere based ageing of chondrichthyan & teleost species

My current research aims to amend the shortcomings of the conventional increment based fish ageing technique, by exploiting natural chromosomal change as a mechanism for determining organismal age.

 

My project aims to assess the prevalence of the telomere length-at-age relationship in aquatic taxa, with a further emphasis on the use of non-lethally obtained tissues (i.e. blood & biopsy tissue) as a source of DNA. The precise nature of the telomere-age relationship will be investigated in a teleost, the Common Carp, and two chondrichthyan species, the Port Jackson shark and the Southern Fiddler ray, in order to assess the utility of this methodology for fisheries science.

 

This research has the potential to provide an invaluable tool for fisheries conservation and management applications of endangered and exploited chondrichthyan and teleost species.

 

Current funding for this project is provided by:

Sea World Research and Rescue Foundation Inc.: Ageing sharks, ray and fish using non-lethal molecular methods. AU $28,800.

Australian Academy of Science – Award for Research on the Conservation of Endangered Australian Vertebrate Species: Changes in telomere length may provide a non-lethal means of determining the ages of free-living Chondrichthyan populations. AU $6,000.

The Sir Mark Mitchell Research Foundation: Telomeres: A Novel & Non-Lethal Chondrichthyan Ageing Method. AU $4,375.

 

 

Genetic population structure of the Port Jackson shark

I am also investigating the population structure of the endemic Port Jackson shark across its entire southern Australian range, based on microsatellite and mitochondrial markers.

 

This research provides a unique opportunity to combine population structure modelling of Port Jackson sharks based on the derived data, with current fisheries based research in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia. The combined analyses and modelling of all these facets of the biology and ecology of Port Jackson sharks will provide a sound understanding of this species across its entire range and possibly represents the first such endeavour for any chondrichthyan species.

 

Current funding for this project is provided by:

The Sir Mark Mitchell Research Foundation: Population Structure of the Port Jackson Shark. AU $4,000.

PADI Project Aware: Population structure of the Port Jackson shark. AU $2,370.

 

Qualifications

Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology, with first class honours, at Flinders University of Adelaide, Australia (2001 - 2005)

 

My honours project was entitled: Aging Port Jackson Sharks, Heterodontus portusjacksoni (Myer 1793), using calcified structures. I was fortunate enough to be co-supervised by Dr Toby Bolton (National Estuary Program, USA) and Dr Kate Rodda (SARDI Aquatic Sciences) as part of the FRDC funded SARDI Aquatic Sciences run Prawn Fishery By-catch and Discards project (2003/023).

 

Awards

2009: MISA – International Student Travel Grant. AU $1,500.

2009: ASFB – John Glover Travel Fund Bursaries. AU $600.

2008: OCS – Best Student Conference Presentation. AU $200.

2008: OCS – Student Conference Travel Award. AU $350.

2008: ASFB – John Glover Travel Fund Bursaries. AU $600.

Research Interests

My primary research interests are in the taxonomy and the fundamental biology of Australia chondrichthyan [sharks, rays, skates and chimaeras] species. I am particularly interested in the area of life history analysis in relation to identifying those potential chondrichthyan species that are at risk to fisheries exploitation.

Publications

Manuscripts in review/preparation

Izzo C, Bertozzi T, Donnellan CE & Gillanders BM (2009) Telomere length measurement in the shark Heterodontus portusjacksoni: a comparison of telomere lengths between multiple tissues and measurement methodologies. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological Genetics and Physiology. In review.

 

Izzo C, Bertozzi T, Gillanders BM & Donnellan CE (In prep) Telomere length based age determination of the common carp, Cyprinus carpio (Linnaeus 1758) (Cyprinidae).

 

Izzo C, Donnellan CE & Gillanders BM (In prep) Recent evolution of telomere length change with age in gnathostomes. Biology Letters.

 

Izzo C & Rodda K (In prep) Validated age and growth of the Port Jackson shark (Heterodontus portusjacksoni) from the Spencer Gulf of South Australia.

 

Peer reviewed publications

Tovar-Avila J, Izzo C, Walker TI, Braccini JM & Day RW (2009) Assessing growth band counts from vertebrae and dorsal-fin spines for ageing sharks: comparison of four methods applied to Heterodontus portusjacksoni. Marine and Freshwater Research. In press.

 

Izzo, C & Gillanders BM (2008) Initial assessment of age, growth and reproductive parameters of the rhinobatid Trygonorrhina fasciata (Muller and Henle 1841) from South Australia. Pan-American Journal of Aquatic Sciences 3, 3: 321-327.

 

Tovar-Avila J, Izzo C, Walker TI, Braccini JM & Day RW (2008) Dorsal-fin spine growth model for Heterodontus portusjacksoni: a general model that applies to dorsal-fin spines of chondrichthyans? Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 65, 1: 74-82.

 

Izzo C, Rodda K & T. Bolton (2007) Incorporation time of oxytetracycline into calcified structures of the elasmobranch Heterodontus portusjacksoni. Journal of Fish Biology 71: 1208-1214.

 

Reports

Izzo C, Rodda K, Bolton T & Svane I (2006) Age and growth the Port Jackson shark (Heterodontus portusjacksoni) from the Spencer Gulf of South Australia. In: Prawn Fishery By-catch and Discards: marine ecosystem analysis – populations effects. I. Svane (ed). Final Report on FRDC Project 2003/023. Pp 167-193.

 

General publications

Izzo C (2008) Determining the ages of shark, ray, skate and chimaera populations in a non-lethal way. Australian Academy of Science – Newsletter 73: 5.

 

Izzo C (2007) Elasmobranch research in South Australia. Australian Society for Fish Biology – Newsletter 37, 2: 59-60.

Professional Associations

American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists

Oceania Chondrichthyan Society Inc.

Australian Society for Fish Biology

Australian Marine Science Association

Flinders University Marine Biology Association

Entry last updated: Friday, 22 Jul 2011