Xin Deng Graduate Student (Ph.D. program) Major Professor: Silas Hung  Phone: (530) 752-7174 FAX: (530) 752-0175 E-mail: xdeng@ucdavis.edu

Education

B.S., Department of Biology, Sichuan University, P.R.China, 1986.

M.S., Department of Animal Science, University of California, Davis. 2000.

Ph.D., Ecotoxicology, University of California, Davis (In Progress).

Project: Chronic toxicity of environmental contaminants in Sacramento splittail (Pogonichthys macrolepidotus): A biomarker approach

 Sacramento splittail is a cyprinid endemic to the Sacramento-San Joaquin drainage of California and an only surviving member of its genus. In recent years, due to dam construction, water diversion, and agricultural development, the living areas of splittail have been reduced to less than one-third of its former range. Its population has declined and the species has been listed for threatened status by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

High concentration of contaminants generated by intensive human activities around the Sacramento-San Joaquin area most likely aggravates the decline of this species. Therefore, the hypotheses being tested in this project are that (1) aquatic contaminants will cause biological responses deleterious to the health of individual fish and the maintenance of fish population; (2) controlled laboratory exposures will help to reveal indicators for chronic toxicity caused by environmental contaminants. 

The objective of this project is to combine in-depth field surveys with controlled laboratory exposures, and an overall biomarker approach, to establish a causative link between contaminant exposure and deleterious effects in Sacramento splittail.