We had two successful Master of Science defenses in the NSU Halmos College of Arts & Sciences Molecular Microbiology and Genomics (MMG) Lab this week. Congrats to Hailey Poignant for her masterful defense of her thesis entitled, “Assessing gene expression changes in the octocoral Briareum asbestinum due to Vibrio coralliilyticus exposure.” This was very nice work that is part of a larger experiment, and where Hailey had to master multiple lab methods in a short amount oif time – RNA extractions and bioinformatics analyses. She now will continue biological studies as PhD student at FSU, our shared alma mater. We all wish her the best of luck in Tallahassee. This should be a very valuable contribution to the relatively sparse literature of octocoral infections. Thanks to her co-supervisors Matias and Ronen. Secondly, congrats to double MSc student and current MMG lab manager, Paisley Samuel, who elegantly presented her doctoral dissertation proposal, “An eDNA Assessment of Microbial & Eukaryotic Community Structure and Function Across Cyanobacterial harmful algal bloom (cHAB) Conditions in Lake Okeechobee, Florida.” Similarly this study extends our previous work with the Army Corps of Engineers in an effort to better understand bloom microbial community dynamics and their potential causes on the lake. Much of her research has yet to be completed, so I will not give away too much here. However, its great to have these exemplary students be a vibrant part of this energetic lab. Newer students are stepping in to take over. Again congrats to this week’s defendees and thanks for the funding support from NCRI and the Keller Foundation, respectively.
Lopez Lab @ NSU 