{"623075":{"#nid":"623075","#data":{"type":"event","title":"MS Defense by Mary McWhirt","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EIn partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EMaster of Science in Biology\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003Ein the\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ESchool of Biological Sciences\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMary McWhirt\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EWill defend her thesis\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026ldquo;Microbiome Variation in Wild vs. Captive Eagle Rays (\u003Cem\u003EAetobatus narinari\u003C\/em\u003E)\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EThursday, July 18, 2019\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E1:00 PM\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EFord ES\u0026amp;T L1118\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EThesis Advisor:\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EDr. Frank J Stewart\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ESchool of Biological Sciences\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Institute of Technology\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECommittee Members:\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EDr. Lisa Hoopes\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EDirector of Research, Conservation and Nutrition\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Aquarium\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EDr. Brian Hammer\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ESchool of Biological Sciences\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Institute of Technology\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAbstract:\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe microbial communities (microbiomes) associated with elasmobranchs are currently not well-understood. The spotted eagle ray (\u003Cem\u003EAetobatus narinari\u003C\/em\u003E) is a slow-maturing ray that is globally distributed in tropical and warm-temperate waters, and is listed as near-threatened by the IUCN Red List. To test how the environment shapes the spotted eagle ray microbiome, we used 16S rRNA Illumina sequencing to compare the microbiomes of the dorsal skin, gill, and cloaca from a ray population near Mote Marine Lab (Sarasota, FL) to those from a captive population in the Ocean Voyager exhibit at Georgia Aquarium, while also analyzing water column microbiomes from both environments. Cloaca microbiomes of both populations had the lowest alpha diversity and highest beta diversity, potentially indicating the presence of transient microbes associated with changes in diet between the environments. The composition of the gill and skin microbiomes differed between captive and wild populations and are similar to, but distinct from, the water column communities while cloaca microbiomes are more dispersed from the water. This pattern is consistent with that seen in teleost fishes and marine mammals. These results indicate a dual role for body niche and environmental conditions in shaping ray microbiomes and identify key taxa that may be important to the health of the rays.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Microbiome Variation in Wild vs. Captive Eagle Rays (Aetobatus narinari)"}],"uid":"27707","created_gmt":"2019-07-09 14:46:38","changed_gmt":"2019-07-09 14:46:38","author":"Tatianna Richardson","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","field_event_time":{"event_time_start":"2019-07-18T14:00:00-04:00","event_time_end":"2019-07-18T15:00:00-04:00","event_time_end_last":"2019-07-18T15:00:00-04:00","gmt_time_start":"2019-07-18 18:00:00","gmt_time_end":"2019-07-18 19:00:00","gmt_time_end_last":"2019-07-18 19:00:00","rrule":null,"timezone":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"221981","name":"Graduate Studies"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"111531","name":"ms defense"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[{"id":"1788","name":"Other\/Miscellaneous"}],"invited_audience":[{"id":"78771","name":"Public"},{"id":"174045","name":"Graduate students"},{"id":"78751","name":"Undergraduate students"}],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}