Larval mosquito midgut and gastric caeca fluorescently labelled for H+ ATPase (green) and Na+/K+ ATPase (red).  M.Patrick

The main goal of my research is to identify and characterize ion transport mechanisms of aquatic organisms, both invertebrate and vertebrate, that inhabit challenging environments. I utilize both gene and protein expression assays to identify candidate transporters and determine how they are regulated under chemically disparate environments.

Current projects:

• Characterization of water/ion regulation by gastric caeca of larval mosquitoes.
• Identification and characterization of sodium and chloride excretion in the exceptionally salt-tolerant mosquito larvae (Ochlerotatus taeniorhynchus).
• Identification and characterization of sodium uptake in an acid-tolerant fish, the blackskirt tetra (Gymnocorymbus ternetzi).
• Characterization of the osmoconforming response in the euryhaline mosquito larvae Culex tarsalis
• Characterizing the relationship between sodium uptake and ammonia excretion in freshwater larval mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti).