My undergraduate experience started at Bates College, and included a year at the University of Montana where I became interested in plant and soil microbial interactions. After receiving a BS in Biology from Bates, I worked in the field of genetics at MIT's Whitehead Institute followed by an additional two years at DeCode Genetics, an Icelandic biotech company in the heart of Reykjavik. Seeking slightly warmer weather and the mountains, I started a doctorate program at Colorado State University, with the goal of applying molecular biology and genetics to help solve environmental problems. Specifically, I wanted to learn of how plants can tolerate environmentally-imposed stress, particularly heavy metals and selenium. Understanding how plants can naturally tolerate heavy metals has applications to the field of phytoremediation, which is the use of plants to clean and remediate contaminated soil or groundwater. Used appropriately, phytoredmediation is safe, cost-effective, and more natural than conventional engineering approaches.

I use molecular techniques to study plant physiology. Although my research is often oreinted at the cellular level, I strive to frame my research questions in an environmental context. The central focus of my research at Coastal Carolina University seeks to better understand the adaptations and pathways (i.e. cellular and genetic mechanisms) that allow plants to tolerate abiotic stress, such as selenium. A current NSF funded research project through 2013 seeks to investigate (1) the role of APR2 protein in selenium tolerance in plants (2) and the function of the proteasome in preventing selenium toxicity. If you are an undergraduate at CCU, and interested in learning more about how to get involved in an undergraduate research project, click here.