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Digital CV
Education
Auburn University
Ph.D. Plant Genomics
Advisor: Dr. Alex Harkess
The University of Georgia, ’21
B.Sc. Plant Biology, Track: Bioinformatics & Biotechnology
Summa Cum Laude
Time & PLace
Auburn, AL
Aug 2021 – Present
Athens, GA
Aug 2018 – May 2021
AWARDS
National Science Foundation
Graduate Research Fellow Award
The Society of Systematic Biologists
Mini-ARTS Award
April 2022
Nov 2021
Research Experience
2021 NSF Graduate Research Fellow, Harkess Lab
Focus: Genome assembly, repetitive DNA, and sex chromosome biology
Advisors: Dr. Alex Harkess, Dr. Sarah Carey
2021 BioTrain Intern, Harkess Lab
Focus: Nodulation-related gene family expansion and sex chromosome biology in Myricaceae
Advisor: Dr. Sarah Carey
2020 CURO Independent Undergraduate Research
Focus: Harvesting laws and practices for threatened medicinal plants on public and private lands in the Southeast
Advisor: Dr. James Affolter
Huntsville, AL
Aug 2021 – Present
Huntsville, AL
June – July 2021
Athens, GA
Jan 2019 – May 2020
PUBLICATIONs
2022 Carey, S. B., Aközbek, L., & Harkess, A. (2022). The contributions of Nettie Stevens to the field of sex chromosome biology. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 377(1850), 20210215.
PRESENTATIONS
International Plant and Animal Genome Conference 2023
The Morella cerifera genome and sex-determining regions in the dioecious species of Myricaceae
2022 UGA Plant Center Retreat (poster)
The Morella cerifera genome and characterization of its sex chromosomes
HudsonAlpha Research Core (Talk), August 2022
The Evolution of Sex Chromosomes in Myricaceae
BOTANY 2022 Conference Lightning Talk
The conservation of sexual systems and sex-determining regions (SDRs) in the dioecious species of Myricaceae
2022 CROPS Conference (Poster)
The conservation of sexual systems and sex-determining regions (SDRs) in the dioecious species of Myricaceae
2022 North American Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation Conference (Poster)
The presence and absence of core legume nodulation genes in the nodulating non-legumes of the genus Morella
2021 BioTrain Internship (Oral & Poster)
Morella as a model system for studying the evolution of non-leguminous nitrogen fixation and other valuable traits
BOTANY 2021 Recent Topics Section (Poster)
Morella as a model system for studying the evolution of non-leguminous nitrogen fixation and other valuable traits
2020 CURO [Virtual] Undergraduate Symposium (Poster)
Harvesting Laws and Practices for Threatened Medicinal Plants on Public and Private Lands in the Southeast
2020 Southeastern Partners in Plant Conservation (SePPCon) (Oral)
The Ethical Forager: A Review of Regulation & Best Practices for the Wild-Harvest of Medicinal Plants in the Southeast view at https://vimeo.com/409966598
2020 Native Plant Symposium, University of Georgia State Botanical Garden (Oral)
Learning from Wild-Harvesters within the Botanical Drug Trade, their Lives and Best Practices
Outreach & Mentorship
Mentees
Caroline Bendickson (Undergraduate, UAH)
2022 BioTrain Internship Program
Poster: Using Angiosperms353 Bait Capture to Rebuild the Trillium genus Phylogeny
Classes, Workshops, & Presentations
LifeScience Links at HudsonAlpha (Middle School Educators)
An Intro Genomic Research via Sex Chromosome Biology
GTAC: Ecosystem Genetics at HudsonAlpha (High School Educators)
The Puzzle of Plants: Genomic Research in Context
HudsonAlpha Teacher Externship
Presentation & demonstration of high-molecular weight DNA extraction
Interim Week at the Randolph School
How to discover a symbiosis: a brief history of plant partnerships & how we study them
Interim Week at the Randolph School
How to discover a symbiosis: a brief history of plant partnerships & how we study them
Volunteer Work
Land Trust of North Alabama
Educational outreach & general volunteer work
Learning by Leading Program 2020, State Botanical Garden of Georgia
Student Member of ArchGIS Team
Science Communication
Herban Myths & Medicine, Co-host
Educational Podcast on Phytochemistry & Ethnobotany