We use interdisciplinary approaches involving biology, chemistry, and physics to investigate how marine organisms interact with their ocean environment.
Flow stimulation of bioluminescence: Studying how flow stimulates bioluminescence in dinoflagellates, including the signaling pathways involved in flow sensing and the physiological responses of individual cells.
Luminescent flow visualization : Using dinoflagellate bioluminescence as a calibrated flow marker to visualize flows of oceanographic and engineering importance.
Chemistry: Discovering and characterizing new molecules involved in bioluminescence and fluorescence systems, and understanding their biological roles.
Coral fluorescence: Studying the function of fluorescent proteins in corals and their relationship to coral health.
Small-scale turbulence and plankton
Population growth of phytoplankton: Characterizing how flow affects the population growth of phytoplankton such as dinoflagellates.
Growth of invertebrate larvae: Studying how flow affects the grazing and growth of sea urchin larvae.
Ecotoxicology
Bioluminescence assays : Using bioluminescence as a sensitive assay for sublethal toxicity of marine pollutants such as metals.
Biological toxicity : Studying the link between the bio-accumulation of contaminants and their toxicity.