Jeffrey Turner
About Born in Louisville, Kentucky, and raised just south of Atlanta, Georgia, I am now happy to call the Gulf of Mexico (aka The Third Coast) home. Prior to my arrival at Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi, I acquired a deep appreciation for our world’s oceans sailing the Bearing Sea and Arctic Ocean with the US Coast Guard. Afterward, I uncovered my fascination for marine ecology at the University of Georgia’s Odum School of Ecology. Following the defense of my dissertation, I boarded a flight to Seattle where I studied genetics and genomics as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center and the University of Washington School of Oceanography. The influence of oceans on human health and well-being has become a central theme in my research and teaching interests. This broad theme intersects with a diversity of topics including but not limited to conservation biology, marine pollution, emerging infectious diseases, harmful algal blooms, coral reef ecology, natural resource management, and global climate change. Education Ph.D., University of Georgia, Odum School of Ecology, 2010. Thesis adviser: Erin K. Lipp. Thesis title: Environmental factors and reservoir shifts contribute to the seasonality of pathogenic Vibrio species.
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Nicole Powers
About Born in Mesa, Arizona and raised in Southlake, Texas, I completed my bachelor’s degree at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma. I majored in microbiology, cell, and molecular biology with a microbial ecology option. During my time as an undergraduate at OSU, I was able to gain valuable experience in several microbiology laboratories. I completed my senior honor’s thesis in a microbial ecology lab (http://youssef.okstate.edu/) where I studied anaerobic fungi as potential sources of biofuels. I focused on optimizing novel anaerobic fungal growth and experimentation techniques. During my summer breaks, I worked at Sea Life Aquarium, where my passion for marine biology developed. Since the beginning of my undergraduate experience, I have been fascinated with the effects that oceanic microorganisms can have on human health. I decided the best way for me to pursue this area of study would be to complete my PhD at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. My research at TAMU-CC will initially be focused on bacterial source tracking of specific molecular markers found in fecal pollution in Corpus Christi and Oso Bay. Education B.S., Oklahoma State University, Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, 2016.
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Paxton Bachand
About Born and raised in the Black Hills of South Dakota, I developed a great appreciation for the outdoors. The pine and spruce mountain forests of the region offered many opportunities to develop the love of the natural world and the want to conserve it. Having a family that appreciated this as well, I was lucky to have plenty of opportunities in nature, one of which was learning to scuba dive at an early age (it was cold). What started as a hobby generated enough interest for me to relocate to Texas A&M – Galveston (TAMUG) to seek both my B.S. degrees in Marine Biology and Marine Fisheries (with a minor in Diving, of course), dedicating much of my time throughout to educational outreach and any research I could involve myself in. After spending time in a variety of labs gaining a wide range of experience, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work in TAMUG’s Seafood Safety Laboratory analyzing oysters for Vibrio vulnificus and Vibrio parahaemolyticus and monitoring the water quality of Galveston’s oyster reefs and waters using fecal indicator bacteria. This led to a greater fascination and realization of the influence of microbes on human health and our ecosystems, spurring me to seek out the Micro-omics lab under Dr. Turner. Bringing all my interests together, I am now seeking a Ph.D. in Marine Biology with my research focused on brown tide harmful algal blooms and characterizing their microbial communities in hopes of finding potential biological controls. While fulfilling my research interests, this has also allowed me to participate in outreach once again, creating a citizen science group from Riviera High School, and to work with and attempt to solve these problems with my coastal neighbors and government agencies.
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David Silva
Currently a resident of the (956) South Texas area code, I was born and raised in the “Valley”, Brownsville Texas, just 15 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico. Here, I obtained a Bachelor’s of Science in Biology from the University of Texas at Brownsville (UTB) now known as UT Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). My undergraduate experiences working with the marine microorganism Vibrio cholerae, under Dr. Daniele Provenzano, prepared and motivated me to pursue a master’s degree in Microbiology from Texas A&M University at College Stations. My research repertoire includes many molecular biology techniques applied to microorganisms from pathogenic eukaryotes/prokaryotes to phages. I took a break from research after completing my master’s degree and became a secondary education teacher, focusing on chemistry, physics and biology for three years. Having said this, my love of gulf and marine microbiology research to Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi where I am pursuing a Ph.D. with the fascinating project studying Vibrio parahaemolyticus.
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Colin O'Donnell
About I knew from an early age that I’d be destined for a career in a marine environment. I grew up not far from the shores of Lake Erie and vacationed with my family at beaches all along the Atlantic Ocean. In middle school, my family relocated to Dallas and I began researching Texas colleges where I could further my interest. That led me to Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, where I’m starting my junior year majoring in Biology with a Marine Biology focus. Shortly after arriving at the Island campus, I got involved with the Islander Stream Team organization, which provided me with the opportunity to take water samples and analyze fecal bacteria counts from Oso Bay and Corpus Christi Bay. This was my first experience with the unseen microbial world and it sparked my interest in getting involved in research surrounding these organisms. To further this interest, I reached out to Dr. Jeffrey Turner about an undergraduate research position. From this, I’ve gained valuable experience working with Nicole Elledge on her bacterial source tracking project and, more recently, investigating the antibacterial properties of amino acid-based surfactants prepared by Dr. Billiot. After earning my undergraduate degree, I plan on obtaining a Master’s degree and then a Ph.D in the Marine Sciences so that I can add to the world’s knowledge base on marine microorganisms.
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Steely Franklin
About I grew up in a small oil field town known as Midland, Texas surrounded by tumbleweeds and dirt. I knew early on that I was passionate about the marine environment and wanted to make a career out of it someday. I came to Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi in 2015 to pursue a biomedical degree in hopes of attending dental school but I decided to follow my childhood dream instead and changed my major to Biology (marine concentration) and added on two minors: Chemistry, and Environmental Science. During my undergrad, I realized I also had a strong passion for microbiology and that these two passions of mine can work as one. While I was an undergrad student, I was president of the Stream Team for a year, this organization would conduct a monthly water quality analysis determining Enterococcus prevalence and water quality parameters in Dr. Turner’s lab. We even presented a poster of our results at MSGSO 8th Annual Research Forum. I worked in a microbiology preparation lab for over two years as a student, these opportunities ended up landing me a job with the City of Corpus Christi conducting microbial and chemical analyses on water and wastewater. After a year of working for the city, I decided I wanted to obtain my Ph.D. degree leading me to where I am today. My research is based In the Coastal Bend assessing physiochemical water quality parameters and determining host-specific molecular markers of bacterial pollution sources that are harmful to human health and the environment.
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Hailey Wallgren
About Despite growing up in landlocked Brandon, South Dakota, I have always been fascinated with marine life, particularly sharks. I completed my bachelor’s degree in biology with a marine concentration here at Texas A&M University- Corpus Christi, but my interests took a sharp left turn just after my junior year when I had the opportunity to do a summer internship in Dr. Turner’s lab through the TAMUCC Honors Program. I was able to design a project searching for Toxoplasma gondii in Corpus Christi Bay as well as participate in Nicole Elledge’s water quality and bacterial source tracking project. Throughout the last year of my bachelor’s degree, I was also able to work as a lab technician on projects concerning Vibrio parahaemolyticus and antimicrobial resistance in enterococci. I will be completing a master’s degree in marine biology here at TAMUCC. My research will involve virulence depression in Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolates from the Pacific Northwest. Education: B.S., Texas A&M Corpus Christi, Department of Life Sciences, 2018
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Elizabeth Longo
About Born and raised here on the Gulf of Mexico, I have been exposed to the marine environment for my entire life. I am currently working on my Bachelor’s Degree here at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. I am majoring in Biomedical Sciences and have a minor in music. Growing up on Corpus Christi Bay has given me first –hand experience and knowledge about the marine environment and the organisms that live there. I have always loved the water and the organisms that live in it, and since I discovered microbiology, my interest in the small things that affect everything has grown. I am particularly interested in how these microorganisms impact the health of humans and the environment. I have been working on my Honors Program Project of Excellence in Dr. Turner’s lab since Fall 2019. My project has been related to participating in Hailey Wallgren’s project with Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolates from the Pacific Northwest. After earning my Bachelor’s Degree, I plan on continuing my education and attending a pharmacy school to earn my Pharm.D. and Ph.D. in pharmaceutical sciences. My experience in this lab has furthered my laboratory skills and knowledge about microbiology invaluably. It has encouraged me to pursue my Ph.D. after pharmacy school to expand my opportunities in research and drug development.
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Ceejay Saenz
About Born and raised in Corpus Christi, Texas, I grew up enjoying the beach and wanting to learn more about our environment. I started attending Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi in 2016, and a couple of years later, I got my first experience in microbiology through the Islander Stream Team. In the semester I joined, we collected water samples biweekly to assess the quality of Oso Bay through fecal indicator bacteria. I enjoyed the time I spent working with the Islander Stream Team, and I knew I wanted to do something similar for my Project of Excellence, a research project completed for the TAMUCC Honors Program. This experience led me to the Microbial and Environmental Genomics Lab, where I was first introduced to the genomics side by Nicole Powers and Hailey Wallgren. I was able to practice assembling Vibrio parahaemolyticus genomes using different genome assemblers, like SPAdes, Velvet, and ABySS. I plan to use this new knowledge to complete my Project of Excellence, which compares the genomes of clinical and environmental Vibrio vulnificus strains to better understand their varying ability to cause disease in humans. Genomics is a new and fast-changing area of study, and I am excited to be learning and researching in this field, along with understanding how it can impact the environment and us.
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Lee Pinnell
About Born and raised in Orillia, Ontario, I grew up hundreds of miles (imperial units!) from the ocean, but through frequent trips to the coast I became fascinated with it. Despite this, I attended the even further inland University of Waterloo. Over my four years I was lucky enough to perform research on Ontario’s Great Lakes and take a marine biology field course in the Bahamas. It was there I met my future MSc. supervisor and subsequently became interested in microbes. I stayed in Waterloo for my MSc., where I focused on microbial cellulose genes in Arctic tundra soils. During these two years I gained a true appreciation for the remarkable significance of the microbial world. After my time in Waterloo I started work as a technician at SickKids hospital in Toronto where I spent two years researching the gut microbiota . Though I thoroughly enjoyed these experiences, I decided that if I was going to make research a lifelong pursuit, I needed to fuse my interest in the ocean with my scientific endeavours. A PhD. in the Marine Biology program at TAMUCC is the result of that fusion. Briefly, my research will involve incubating PET plastic pellets in the Laguna Madre and using metagenomics to characterize the microbial community that colonizes and potentially biodegrades these pellets. Education M.Sc., University of Waterloo, Department of Biology, 2011. Thesis adviser: Josh D. Neufeld. Thesis title: Targeted enrichment of cellulase genes using stable-isotope probing and metagenomics.
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