I am interested in matching physiological plasticity with genetic diversity within ecologically important photosynthetic marine protists. Characterizing the functional diversity within these organisms enables our understanding of genetic differences to be placed within an ecological context. My research methods include genetic, photo-physiological, photochemical, metabolic and bioinformatics analyses and are unified by the goal of understanding how climate change will impact marine algal diversity and productivity.
Graduate Students
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Audrey McQuiggley:
Masters Student (Fall 2020)
Audrey is starting her first year as a master’s student in the lab. She is particularly interested in how light ecology affects animal health and behavior. Audrey has a diverse professional background, from gene and cell therapies production, to aquarium habitat design and maintenance. She first became interested in light while working in the environmental laboratories at the Georgia Aquarium, where she collaborated extensively with the Zoological Lighting Institute (ZLI) to promote captive animal health. She received her B.Sc. in Biology from the University of Florida in 2016.
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Krystle-Blue Pahl:
Ph.D Student (Spring 2021)
Originally from Canada, Blue received her Bachelor of Science from the University of Windsor, Ontario in 2011 her Master’s under the supervision of Dr. Nigel Hussey in late 2020. As a Master’s student Blue studied trophic interactions among large apex predators (i.e. using a top down approach) by examining dietary composition through diet contents and stable isotope analysis of shark muscle and liver tissue. She successfully published two manuscripts; a review in Food Webs on the methods available to study and measure intraguild predation in modern food webs, and a study on the pre-treatment and utility of shark liver tissue as a tool to further our understanding of elasmobranch ecology published in the Journal of Fish Biology. Blue is now excited to examine nutrient cycling in corals as well as photo-physiological responses of Symbiodiniacea in an effort to reveal thermally tolerant phenotypes with an overarching goal of identifying ways to reduce coral bleaching events and conserve coral reef ecosystems.
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Shannon Dalessandri:Ph.D Student (summer 2022)
Shannon received her bachelor’s degree in Environmental Sciences and Biology from California State University, Sacramento in 2018, and her Master’s in Environmental Sciences from the University of East Anglia in the UK in 2020. As a master’s student her research focused on marine toxicology; specifically, if biomarkers used to monitor chemical contamination induced biological impairment in common flatfish species are influenced by abiotic factors, such as age, sex, and body composition. This work is under review for publication in Frontiers of Marine Science. Post graduation Shannon joined the University of Southern Mississippi’s Marine Education Center, helping teachers bring marine and watershed education into the classroom. Her current research focuses on how phytoplankton and harmful algal bloom will respond to climate change and ocean acidification. |
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Jicayla Johnson-Rosemond:Ph.D Student (fall 2022)
Jicayla Johnson-Rosemond is beginning her first year as a PhD student. She has Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and Biology, and has conducted research on a wide range of topics from bat roosting habits to dolphin bioacoustics. Her current research focuses on phytoplankton and the feeding selectivity of oysters and corals. |
Research Technician
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Sean Lowry:
Sean made his way down to us in the Summer of 2021. He received a Master’s of Professional Science at the University of Miami where he researched the potential of using the RRN Operon as a metabarcode for marine microbiomes. When not attending to our Aiptasia cultures, Sean maintains the lab equipment and helps graduate students with their projects as well as helping to prepare the lab for future projects.
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REU Students
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Joseph Brennan:
Summer REU student (2020)
Joe is originally from Wisconsin, but is currently a 4th year undergraduate majoring in Marine Biology at Florida International University. He enjoys scuba diving and playing soccer in his free time. His main research interests lie in using genetic variation and physiological responses to understand how corals and their symbiotic algae adapt to climate change associated stressors. During his time at DISl, Joe used the sea anemone (aiptasia) to understand how nutrient amendments influence the production of reactive oxygen species within zooxanthellate algae and the impact on the coral symbioses during high temperature stress. Joe plans to continue his research on the ecology and evolution of the coral-algae symbiotic relationships in the future.
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Sophie Wong:
Summer REU student (2021)
Sophie is a fourth year undergraduate from Virginia majoring in Environmental Science and Biology at the University of Virginia. Her research focuses on diversity of zooxanthellae and how it adapts to environmental stressors. During her time at DISL, Sophie is using different strains of zooxanthellae to understand frequency of sexual recombination in zooxanthellae under nutrient limitation.
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