MY RESEARCH
PARASITE MICROBIOMES AND HOST MANIPULATION: WHO`S REALLY PULLING THE STRINGS?
2022-2025
With the help of Dr Fátima Jorge and Prof Robert Poulin, I will be working with a team of students to characterise the microbiome in helminth parasites, and then interrogate what is the role of microbes in phenotypic changes induced by parasites in their hosts. This project involves a combination of experimental work with antibiotics treatments to knock out bacteria, metagenomics and metabolomics, and is funded by a Marsden Grant.
GENOME ASSEMBLY OF ONITHOCHITON NEGLECTUS
2021 (ongoing)
In collaboration with Dr Annabel Whibley and Dr Shane Lavery, I am assembling the genome of Onithochiton neglectus using a combination of short and long-range sequencing.
DIFFERENTIAL GENE EXPRESSION IN RESPONSE TO HEAT STRESS IN A MARINE MOLLUSC
2020 (ongoing)
In collaboration with Dr Shane Lavery, I am assembling the transcriptome of Onithochiton neglectus, and using it in differential gene expression analyses to better understand temperature tolerance in different populations of this species.
THERMOTOLERANCE IN INTERTIDAL VS SUBTIDAL CHITONS (CO-SUPERVISION OF MSC LENIZE POOLMAN)
2021-2022
Lenize Poolman was supervised by Dr Anthony Hickey. Dr Shane Lavery  and I had the privilege to be part of this team looking at thermotolerance across species that inhabit the intertidal vs the subtidal zones.
GENETIC AND PHENOTYPIC VARIATION OF ONITHOCHITON NEGLECTUS ACROSS A HETEROGENEOUS MARINE ENVIRONMENT
2016-2020
In my PhD, I looked at the spatial distribution of genetic and morphological diversity in the marine environment, using a neglected New Zealand shellfish as a model. I found unique characteristics of shell-shape and genomic variation that are likely adaptive. My thesis addressed the challenges of detecting local adaptation in natural populations, contributing to the understanding of how species respond to environmental variability.