University of Maine marine scientist Laurie Connell isn’t one to brag: she would rather talk about the potential of her current research than the popularity of what she has published in the past. With more than five months at the top of the charts in the highly respected scientific journal Nature, however, discussion of her “clam paper” is nearly unavoidable.

“I was shocked to hear that the paper was so popular. It’s had more than 60,000 downloads since November, and it’s still going,” Connell said with enthusiasm. “I’m not sure what made it so popular, but is does have a very broad appeal.”

Connell discovered is that not all clams are created equal when it come to fighting off the affects of PSP [Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning], and has begun to unravel a microscopic mystery that speaks to the very nature of the nervous system itself.

Thanks to a mutation in their genetic code, red tide resistant clams were able to survive and reproduce despite the presence of saxitoxin, eventually becoming the dominant strain in clam populations that are frequently exposed to red tide.

In fact, Connell and her team of specialists found that the mutant clams were more than 1000 time more resistant to the affects of red tide than their unmutated brethren, a surprising discovery that has significant implications in both clam management and medical research.

If a core segment of your maturation was dependent on deep frying with a beer batter or raw cherrystones on the half-shell — as mine was — this is critical research.