Jessica Vorse, B.S.
she/her/hers
The College of Wooster, B.S. in Biology, 2019
UNE, M.S. in Marine Science, 2022
Jessica was a M.S. student in Marine Science and co-advised by Dr. Kristin Burkholder (School of Biological Sciences) and Dr. Carrie Byron (School of Marine and Environmental Programs). Jess’s research focused on post-harvest conditions that impact microbiological safety of edible seaweed. Her work was truly interdisciplinary and allowed her to engage in microbiology bench work while also interacting with collaborators in the Maine seaweed industry.
Collen Moody
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, 2022
Colleen studied the effect of post-harvest conditions on microbiological safety of edible seaweed. Her findings will inform food safety practices used by Maine’s growing seafood industry.
Justin Dixson
he/him/his
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, 2022
Justin studied whether microplastics can serve as vectors for pathogen transport into marine organisms used for human food consumption. He also played hockey for UNE.
Afnan Saleem Yahya
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology with minors in Public Health and Health, Wellness, and Society, 2022
Afnan’s project examined the potential for novel compounds to increase Staphylococcal susceptibility to antibiotics. Her work will provide insight to one novel approach to multi-antibiotic resistant bacteria.
Katharina Roese, B.S.
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, 2021
UNE, M.S. in Biology, 2022
Kati was a 4+1 M.S. student in Biology and studied the impact of novel compounds on Staphylococcal biofilm formation and antibiotic susceptibility. Her work will aid in our understanding of mechanisms by which we may impair bacterial biofilm development and enhance efficacy of existing antimicrobials.
Lyle Massoia, B.S.
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, 2022
UNE, M.S. in Biology, 2024
Lyle was a 4+2 M.S. student in Biology and studied whether microplastics can serve as vectors for pathogen transport into marine organisms used for human food consumption. Her work will shed light on the potential food safety impact of ocean microplastics.
Lauren Cooper, B.S.
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology with a minor in Public Health, 2023
Lauren’s project examined the potential for novel hybrid compounds to increase Staphylococcal susceptibility to antibiotics and assisted with Kati’s project.
Ashley Kand, B.S.
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology (Pre-Dental, 3+4), with a minor in Chemistry, 2022
Justin Trueira, B.S.
he/him/his
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, with minors in Public Health and Health, Wellness, and Society, 2023
Justin assisted with our seaweed food safety projects, which examine the impact of post-harvest storage conditions and processing methods with microbial safety of seaweed.
Carly Stringer, B.S.
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, 2023
Carly assisted with our seaweed food safety projects, which examine the impact of post-harvest storage conditions and processing methods with microbial safety of seaweed.
Sarah Swanick, B.S.
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, with a minor in Nutrition, 2023
Anjana Govindaraj, B.S.
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology (3+4 COM track), with a minor in Health, Medicine, and Society, 2024
Amber-Rae Pesek
she/her/hers
Alya Theriault, B.S.
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, 2024
UNE, M.S. in Biology, 2025
Because Staphylococcus aureus infections are a major cause of drug resistant, biofilm-associated infections, novel therapeutics are needed to treat these infections. Therefore, her project focused on the effects of antimicrobial peptides (AMP) on the antibiotic-mediated killing of staphylococcal biofilms.
Jason Kang, B.S.
he/him/his
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, 2025
Julia Gold
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology (3+4 CDM track), 2027 (expected)
Lauren Adams
she/her/hers
UNE, B.S. in Medical Biology, 2025