“Ecotoxicogenomics of Daphnia Magna”

Prof.  Chris Vulpe,  Nutritional Science and Toxicology, College of Natural Resources, UC Berkeley

In recent years, the field of genomics has developed rapidly, and several new avenues of study have evolved, including ecotoxicogenomics. With these advances in bodies of knowledge have developed new lab techniques like microarray hybridization, and genome sequencing. This study focuses on the unique gene expression of D. magna as they are exposed to various toxicants. D. magna were chosen as an aquatic model organism because of their simple body structure, their sensitivity to pollutants, and most importantly their ability to reproduce asexually. In the future, this study will analyze the list of differential expression genes and determine whether there exists a unique imprint of differential expressed genes for each chemical. This research could potentially lead into building a database of biomarkers for a list of chemicals to compare with unknown pollutants for identification of the pollutant. Another would be to determine other potential hazards of chemicals beyond what current methods allow.

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Daniel is a Molecular Toxicology major in the College of Natural Resources at UC Berkeley. He attended Contra Costa College and Diablo Valley College, where he was a lifetime member of his honors society, and maintained a 3.9 GPA. After completing his undergraduate work he will decide whether to continue his education in toxicology, or pursue medical degree. Daniel will be the first person in his family to receive a college degree.