Jan H. Landsberg

Jan H. Landsberg is a biologist, researcher, and author. Her professional research interests in biology[1] have particular focus on aquatic animal and environmental health.

Early life and education

Landsberg was born in London, England on 2 April 1954 and grew up in North Finchley, London. She currently resides in St. Petersburg, Florida, U.S.

Landsberg's early education took place in North Finchley, where she attended Comrie House elementary school, and high school, Woodhouse Grammar School. She received a BSc in Zoology from the University of Exeter, Exeter, England in 1975 and her Ph.D. (Biology) from Queen Mary College, University of London in 1981.

Research

Landsberg currently works for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission[2]

Landsberg has authored dozens of peer-reviewed papers including Effects of Harmful Algal Blooms on Aquatic Organisms,[3] which was published in Reviews in Fisheries Science in 2002. The paper has been cited in over 1,000 papers.[4] Much of her early research largely focused on coccidian and other parasites in fish.[5][6][7][8][9][10] Additionally, she has researched fibropapillomatosis in Florida sea turtles.[11] Landsberg is widely recognized for her work with biotoxins including the Florida red tide organism Karenia brevis.[12]

Beginning in 2002, she was the agency lead on an investigation of human illness from consuming puffer fish caught in the Indian River Lagoon (IRL),[13] in Florida. The investigation included the coordination of a multiagency (state, federal) team that identified, for the first time in the U.S., that saxitoxin was produced by the harmful algal bloom species Pyrodinium bahamense, and was the source of the poisonings.[14] Saxitoxin in Florida pufferfish can be fatal to humans. The findings from this investigation led to the closure of the pufferfish fishery in the IRL and the continuing monitoring of shellfish beds to ensure they are not contaminated with the toxin.

Landsberg is currently involved in two major multi-partner collaborative research investigations in estuaries and coastal areas in Florida. The first is to determine why manatees have been dying in the IRL since 2013. The second is to identify the cause of a major unidentified disease(s) affecting multiple species of corals in the Florida reefs. The diseases are having a major impact and killing thousands of corals. It is a national and international issue.

Writing

Landsberg's interest in the environment and sciences extends to her work as a writer. Her writing focuses on nature's mysteries and myths.

Her first novel, The Curse of the Crystal Kuatzin was published in 2013.[15] In 2014, the book received a Gold from the Literary Classics International Book Awards and Reviews in the Young Adult Fiction category,[16] and was a finalist in the 2014 Dante Rossetti Award in the Young Adult Novels category.[17]

Her second book, an exposé of UFOs and their origin, UFOs Unmasked,[18] was published in August 2018.

References
  1. Dr. Jan H. Landsberg. gulfbase. https://www.gulfbase.org/people/dr-jan-h-landsberg
  2. Ecosystem Assessment and Restoration: Jan Landsberg, retrieved November 30, 2017 from http://myfwc.com/research/about/careers/staff-spotlight/jan-landsberg/
  3. Landsberg, J.H. (2002). Effects of Harmful Algal Blooms on Aquatic Organisms. Review in Fisheries Science, 10(2):113-390 https://doi.org/10.1080/20026491051695
  4. "Google Scholar".
  5. Landsberg, J.H. and Paperna, I. (1985). Goussia cichlidarum n. sp. (Barrouxidae, Apicomplexa), a coccidian parasite in the swimbladder of cichlid fish. Zeitschrift für Parasitenkunde, 32:194-201
  6. Landsberg, J.H. and Paperna, I. (1986). Ultrastructural study of the coccidian Cryptosporidium sp. from stomachs of juvenile cichlid fish. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms, 2:13-20
  7. Landsberg, J.H. (1993). Two new species of coccidian parasites (Apicomplexa, Eimeriorina) from red drum, Sciaenops ocellatus (L.)(Sciaenidae). Diseases of Aquatic Organisms, 16:83-90
  8. Landsberg, J.H. et al. (1998). Parasites of fish as indicators of environmental stress. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 51:211-232
  9. Landsberg, J.H. (1993). Myxosporean parasites of the common snook, Centropomus undecimalis (Bloch, 1792) in Florida. Journal of Aquatic Animal Health, 5:102-109
  10. Landsberg, J.H. et al. (1992). Effect of serum and mucus of blue tilapia, Oreochromis aureus on infectivity of the parasitic dinoflagellate, Amyloodinium ocellatum in cell culture. Fish Pathology, 27:163-169
  11. Landsberg, J.H. et al. (1999). The potential role of natural tumor promoters in marine turtle fibropapillomatosis. Journal of Aquatic Animal Health, 11:199-210
  12. Landsberg, J.H. et al. (2009). Karenia brevis red tides, brevetoxins in the food web, and impacts on natural resources: decadal advancements. Harmful Algae, 8:598-607 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hal.2008.11.010
  13. Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program. (2017). Retrieved from http://www.irlcouncil.com Retrieved June 14, 2017
  14. Landsberg, J.H. et al. (2006). Saxitoxin puffer fish poisoning in the United States, with the first report of Pyrodinium bahamense as the putative toxin source. Environmental Health Perspectives, 114:91502-1507
  15. Landsberg, Jan H. (2013). The Curse of the Crystal Kuatzin. CreateSpace. ISBN 978-1-4826-3514-0
  16. Literary Classics. (n.d).2014 Award Winning Books. Retrieved May 15, 2017 from http://www.clcawards.org/2014AwardRecipients.html
  17. Chanticleer Book Reviews. (n.d). The Dante Rossetti Awards 2014 for Young Adult Novels – Official Finalist List. Retrieved May 15, 2017 from https://www.chantireviews.com/2015/03/06/the-dante-rossetti-awards-2014-for-young-adult-novels-official-finalist-list/
  18. Landsberg, Jan H. (2018). UFOs Unmasked. CreateSpace. ISBN 978-1-5187-6282-6
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