Pia H. Moisander
Professor of Biology
Professor of Estuarine and Ocean Sciences
pmoisander at umassd dot edu
School of Marine Science – Department of Estuarine and Ocean Sciences
On sabbatical in Spring 2024: University of Helsinki, Department of Microbiology
Graduate students
Lucy Manlick, MS student in Marine Biology
Microbial communities in microplastics. Metagenomics, flow cytometry. Lab’s outreach expert!
Emma Steedman, MS student in Marine Biology
Environmental controls of marine non-cyanobacterial diazotrophs
Undergraduate students
Isabell Hunter, lab management
Alumni – graduate students
Kenneth Boyle, MS in Marine Biology 2o24
Thesis: Marine biofilm community assembly is driven by seasonality in the Western North Atlantic Ocean
Abhishek Naik, PhD, Marine Science and Technology 2024
Current position: Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Connecticut (Marine Sciences)
I am interested in how bacteria and eukaryotes respond to disturbance when they are a part of complex microbial communities. My research considers such communities within marine biofilms, and asks how strong local disturbance can alter biofilm development. We grow coastal biofilms in-situ, and disturb them using novel, sustainable antifouling technologies being developed by collaborating engineering groups. Can we discover patterns of community resistance or recovery to better understand the success of the biofilm lifestyle? Which biofilm organisms or organismal associations are particularly resistant, and which are crucial for community recovery? I address these questions using bulk biomass, amplicon sequencing, and metagenomics approaches.
Stephanie Richard, M.S., Marine Biology, 2023. Thesis: Impact of Climate Change on Copepod Microbiome
Current position: Research Assistant, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA
Katyanne Shoemaker. PhD. Marine Science and Technology; M.S. in Marine Biology.
Current position: Research Biologist, NOAA
Ryan Nuttall. M.S. in Marine Science and Technology and M.S. in Marine Biology
Rosemary Scavotto. M.S. in Marine Biology
Sarah Holmes. M.S. in Marine Biology
Meaghan Daley. M.S. in Marine Science (UMass Boston) (co-advisee)