Graduate Students
Ms. Elizabeth Manchester, MSc candidate 2022-2024
Thesis title. Cardiac response to thermal cycling in the zebrafish
Awarded: NSERC PGSM, Ontario Graduate Scholarship, and Morwick Graduate Scholarship in Aquatic Biology
Current Position: PhD Student, UGuelph
Mr. Jared Shaftoe, MSc candidate 2021-2024
Thesis title. Role of phospholamban in regulating the zebrafish heart during thermal acclimation
Awarded: NSERC PGSM, and Ontario Graduate Scholarship
Mr. Chacko Sujith, MSc candidate 2021 – 2024
Thesis title. Effects of diluted bitumen exposure on hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis and olfactory epithelium in Coho salmon
Current Position: Medical School
Mr. Reece Long, MSc Candidate 2021-2023
Thesis title, Role of thyroid hormone in regulating cardiac regeneration in zebrafish
Awarded: NSERC Graduate Scholarship 2022
Current Position: Medical School, UBC
Ms. Derin Calik, MSc Candidate, 2021-2023
Thesis title. Molecular response of Coho fry to bitumen exposure
Current Position: PhD Student co-supervised by S.A. Alderman and T.E. Gillis
Ms. Maria Yutsyschyna, transferred from MSc (started in 2020) to PhD (2022)
Thesis title. Cellular strategies to protect the hagfish heart during anoxia exposure and recovery
Awarded: NSERC PGSD, Ontario Graduate Scholarship, Morwick Graduate Scholarship in aquatic biology
Mr. Leonardi Nataprawira, MSc Candidate, 2019-2023
Thesis title. The influence of cold acclimation and biomechanical stretch on the function of cultured trout cardiac fibroblasts
Current position Undergraduate Lab Instructor, University of Toronto
Ms. Yuwen Ding, MSc Candidate, 2017-2020
Thesis title. The effect of stretch on collagen deposition by cultured trout cardiac myocytes
Awarded: Ontario Graduate Scholarship
Current position: Research Scientist, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto
Mr. Sean Avey, MSc, 2017-2019
Thesis title. Effects of diluted bitumen exposure on Atlantic salmon smolts: Molecular and metabolic responses in relation to swimming performance.
Awarded: Ontario Graduate Scholarship
Current position: Research Technician, Alderman Lab, UGuelph
Ms. Calli Freedman, MSc, 2016-2019
Thesis title. The role of corticotropin-releasing factor in protecting the heart during hypoxia exposure
Awarded: NSERC Graduate Scholarship
Current Position, Practicing Veterinarian
Ms. Lauren Gattrell, MSc, 2015-2017
Thesis title. Metabolic function of the hagfish heart during long-term anoxia exposure
Current position: Veterinary Technician
Dr. Sarah Shorno, PhD, 2014-2017
Thesis title. The dynamics of hagfish slime thread production and assembly in the gland thread cell (GTC)
Awarded: Ontario Graduate Scholarship
Current Position: Undergraduate Lab Instructor, University of Guelph
Dr. Elizabeth Johnston, PhD, 2012-2019
Thesis title. Regulation of collagen deposition by trout cardiac fibroblasts
Awarded: Scholander Award from the American Physiological Society (2018) for best presentation by a HQP (PhD or PDF)
Current position: Research Fellow. Dichek Lab, Division of Cardiology, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle
Ms. Elizabeth Sears, MSc, 2011-2014
Thesis title. Evolution of cardiac troponin function in vertebrates
Awarded: Ontario Graduate Scholarship
Current position: Researcher, Canadian Museum of Nature
Dr. Jordan Klaiman, PhD, 2007- 2013
Thesis title: The effects of thermal acclimation on the functional properties of the trout myocardium
Awarded: Alexander Graham Bell PhD Scholarship from NSERC and Post-Doctoral Fellowship from Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
Current position:Project Manager, Heart Regeneration Program, University of Washington, Seattle WA
Ms. Nicole Pinto, MSc, 2010-2012
Thesis title. Production of a bio-polymer from recombinant vimentin
Awarded Ontario Graduate Scholarship and PhD Scholarship from Western
Co-supervisor: Dr. Doug Fudge
Completed PhD at Western University Cancer Institute, currently research scientist at Novo Nordisk
Ms. Silvana Miller, MSc, 2008-2010
Thesis title: Effect of hypoxia exposure on the development of the cardio-respiratory system in rainbow trout
Awarded: Ontario Graduate Scholarship
Current position: Research Associate, Humber College
Ms. Kelly Kirkpatrick, MSc, 2006-2009
Thesis Title: Cloning and functional characterization of trout cardiac troponin I
Current position: High school teacher, Bishop Straughn High School Toronto
Awarded: Ontario Graduate Scholarship