ANDY LEE
Evolutionary Biology | Marine Ecology | Genetics and Genomics
PhD Research
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology,
Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University
I am a first year PhD student at the Christie Lab at Purdue EEB. I am interested how populations in marine environments are connected. Are marine populations open or closed? My research will focus on studying connectivity in Kellet's Whelks using genomic and transcriptomic techniques.
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Research Technician
Genetic Research Lab,
California Department of Fish & Wildlife
As a Scientific Aid at the Wildlife Investigations Lab and genetic research lab, I used various conservation genetic and genomic techniques to protect and conserve California native species. I focused largely on creating libraries using Double Digest RADseq (ddRAD) to analyze Tule elks and Rocky Mountain elks.
Undergrad Research
Bodega Marine Laboratory, UC Davis
Mammalian Ecology and Conservation Unit,
Veterinary Genetics Lab, UC Davis
I conducted plankton sampling using field and robotics techniques, then identified plankton using microscopy and genetics. I also coordinated and managed the California Collaborative Fisheries Research Project. I worked with scientists, commercial fishermen, and recreational anglers to monitor California’s Marine Protected Areas and determined their efficacy at preserving groundfish species from fishing pressure.
For my undergraduate thesis at the MECU, I examined genetic differences of island spotted skunks from Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa Islands, as part of a larger study on the timing of divergence between skunks of the Channel Islands and mainland California. I extracted and sequenced DNA from the displacement loop (D-loop) region of the mitochondrial genome, a useful biomarker to delineate divergence. I presented the findings of my thesis at the 30th Annual UC Davis Undergraduate Research Conference.