The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience
Please welcome Dr. Lexi Duscher to Whitney Laboratory! Dr. Duscher joins Dr. Christine Schnitzler's lab where she looks forward to expanding her molecular and microscopy skills using the Hydractinia model system and potentially focusing on the immune system’s involvement in stem cell regeneration.
Dr. Duscher is originally from Minnesota but has lived in Florida for the past 10 years. She obtained her bachelors in Marine Science at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, FL. She then worked with Dr. Jamie Foster at the University of Florida in the Department of Microbiology and Cell Science as a post-baccalaureate and focused on the metagenomes of rock-forming bacterial communities called stromatolites. After a year she began her PhD with Dr. Foster on squid symbiosis (Vibrio fischeri and Euprymna scolopes) and innate immunity in a space-like environment. She mainly focused on bioinformatic analysis of transcriptomic datasets from the prospective of both the bacteria and the squid. In her free time she enjoys being outside at the beach, surfing, paddling, and hiking.