PhD: From morphology to microbiome: integrated common garden-genomic studies in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)
Bangor University
Previous to my PhD I have worked on projects at the University of Bristol, where I conducted my master’s degree, as well as at Cardiff University, in the city that I call home. These projects included the use of genetic data to uncover population connectivity in deep sea bioluminescent shark, as well as using whole-genome sequence data and Bayesian computation to better understand the population genetics of East African cichlids diverging in sympatry.
Research Project:
I am a first year PhD student at the Molecular Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory (MEFGL) in Bangor University, and my research interests are based around aquaculture, Atlantic salmon, and microbiomes. As global fish stocks decline, many fisheries are turning to aquiculture. Aquiculture is lagging 8000 years behind agriculture, but it is rapidly catching up, especially in high value fish such as salmon. With the implementation of next-generation sequencing huge progress has also been made in discovering more about microbiomes, demonstrating the integral role they play in the functioning of their hosts. Combining these contemporary issues, my project is looking at the microbiome in farmed and wild Atlantic salmon, and the impacts this has on the fish.
View a video I created in partnership with Mair Perkins Ltd, explaining my research.