Museomics • Epigenetics • Conservation
I use molecular data to investigate how wildlife has responded to historical environmental change. I am currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Australian National Wildlife Collection (CSIRO) where I am developing new techniques to extract molecular information from museum specimens.
Recent News
- On the cover – Museum Genomics
This gorgeous saltwater croc from CSIRO’s Australian National Wildlife Collection has had a busy few decades. It was preserved in spirit with formalin in 1973. In 2018, it became part of my team’s first ever successful whole genome sequencing from formalin-preserved museum specimens. In 2022, it graced the cover of Molecular Ecology Resources. Catch our ground-breaking… Read More »On the cover – Museum Genomics - Would you like to time travel?
Join me for the STELR Project’s Role Model Series where I talk about my job as a Conservation Geneticist and my journey into a STEM career. - Conservation in the Conversation
Read my recent contribution to the Conversation describing the hidden treasures my team at the Australian National Wildlife Collection is uncovering from museum specimens. We’re turning the formalin-fixation problem on it’s head by chiseling DNA out of specimens that have long been thought to be devoid of DNA. We can then use the historical genomic… Read More »Conservation in the Conversation - Formalin got you fixed? Our new study paves the way for genomic sequencing of formalin-preserved museum specimens.
Formalin-fixed specimens are no longer inaccessible for WGS thanks to our new specimen vetting & sequencing approach. - New pronghorn paper
At long last, my final paper from my PhD is published. In this analysis of the captive population of endangered Sonoran pronghorn, Melanie Culver and I show that management efforts have maintained genetic diversity and distinction within the recovering population without increasing inbreeding. To read our new study, check our open access paper in Conservation… Read More »New pronghorn paper
It was a treat stopping by the @Fitaklab for my first in-person talk since Feb 2020! Hoping I’ve encouraged more researchers to tackle #museum #genomics!
I had an amazing time catching up with my friend, and colleague @erin_e_hahn! She gave an awesome presentation to @UCFBiologyDept on her contributions to museum genomics and epigenomics. @melanieculver59
Can sequencing these specimens reveal the wild hosts of zoonotic viruses? Work is underway to answer this question. Watch this space! https://twitter.com/erin_e_hahn/status/1543927318242103297
This juvenile saltwater croc 🐊 (collected 1973) from the ANWC spirit vault is gracing the cover of MER @molecology today! Check out our paper in this issue as well as a Perspective on advances in sequencing wet collections.
http://tinyurl.com/3bcebr2k
Check out this story on Mariana and myself, both inspired by nature as children and now working to benefit future generations @CSIRO #strongertogether #womeninSTEMM https://blog.csiro.au/leading-women-in-stemm/