Postdocs

Luis Alvarado-Marchena

Dr. Luis Alvarado-Marchena is a plant virologist who studies virus-host interactions using molecular and ultrastructural approaches. His research interests include: characterization of essential genes and functions in the infectious cycle of viruses, study of the intra- and intercellular movement of viruses in their susceptible hosts and RNA silencing in the process of virus pathogenesis.

Contact Luis: luisalvaradomarchena@usf.edu

Technicians

AJ Gross

AJ’s research focuses on determining, characterizing, and studying removal methods of emerging contaminants in Tampa Bay, Florida, whether they be chemicals like PFAS and pharmaceuticals, microplastics, bacteria, or viruses. His research interests include viruses, CRISPR systems and genome editing, and coral. He’s looking forward to expanding his research into viruses in the marine environment and learning new Molecular Biology and Bioinformatic techniques.

Contact AJ: ajgross@usf.edu

Nina Rodriguez Perez

Nina recently graduated with her B.S. in Marine Biology. Her current projects involve the use of DNA barcoding to assess the relationship between fish spawning patterns and varying depths within the West Florida Shelf in the Gulf of Mexico. She is also working on further describing the newly discovered potential interactions between viruses and seagrass in Tampa Bay. Before joining the lab, Nina’s previous research experiences involved comb jelly genomics, wastewater microbiology, and bacteriophage bioinformatics.

Contact Nina: ariannar2@usf.edu