Role of microbiomes in protecting against disease
In the Hawley lab at Virginia Tech, I studied the role of microbiomes in infection and co-infection in local house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus). With wild-caught birds, I conducted experiments manipulating microbiomes and infections to detect patterns of how microbes shape disease dynamics.
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Upper respiratory bacterial dynamics in North American tortoises (genus Gopherus)
The genus Gopherus contains six species, all in North America. An upper respiratory tract disease has been found in tortoises across the United States, and has been implicated in population declines in two species. My dissertation research focused on multiple aspects of this disease: prevalence and diversity of one pathogen associated with this disease, Mycoplasma agassizii; co-infections of pathogens associated with disease and the interaction of co-infections with clinical signs of disease; and the microbial communities present in upper respiratory tracts of tortoises with and without detectable pathogens. This work led to a US Fish and Wildlife Service (2018) grant to assess pathogen genetic diversity from field cultures.
My dissertation research was supported by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship awarded in 2012. (photos: Left, Gopherus polyphemus restraint device post-sampling; Below, G. agassizii peeking out of burrow) |
Skin-associated microbes on amphibians and reptiles
Collaborators at Charles Darwin University (Australia) and I conducted experiments comparing skin-associated bacteria among species (including frogs and lizards), habitat types, and sites. We found very different communities on invasive cane toads compared with native species, and lizards had surprisingly high microbial diversity. We plan to continue to investigate the interactions between reptiles and their skin microbes and how parasites interact with skin microbiomes on frogs.
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Parasites and predators of tide pool cerith snails
With Dr. Mark Torchin at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, I conducted experiments to compare parasite prevalence and predation rates in snails at two sites in Panama. This research was supported by the NSF Graduate Research Internship Program.
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