| Affiliations: | STEM Research Leadership |
| Project Leader: | Amy Tan
atan@tamu.edu Biology |
| Faculty Mentor: | Marie Strader, PhD. |
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Meeting Times:
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TBA |
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Team Size:
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4 |
| Open Spots: | 0 |
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Special Opportunities:
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You will learn wet lab and analysis skills that are transferrable to other areas of research. For students who are in the lab for more than one semester, there are often opportunities to attend and present at local conferences.
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Team Needs:
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Willingness to work with live animals (purple sea urchins and Cassiopaea jellyfish); animal husbandry tasks and other lab chores will be part of your weekly responsibilities. Most work will be conducted on weekdays between 9 am – 6 pm and requires blocks of several hours at a time. |
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Description:
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Using purple sea urchins, we investigate how environmental conditions during early life stages impact invertebrate development. Environmental conditions like seawater temperature and bacterial content alter the growth and gene expression of urchin larvae. Epigenetic mechanisms, like DNA methylation, could be one way the urchin larvae rapidly adapt to their local environment. Outside of vertebrate models, we still have a lot to learn about the mechanisms and heritability of DNA methylation. To answer these questions, we use tools such as microscopy, image analysis, in situ hybridization, sequencing, and quantification assays. |