Fulbright Fellow in Australia

Joe Pollack In addition, Dr. Owens also visited Townsville, Australia which is the home of James Cook University and the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS). Our graduate student Joe Pollock is a Fulbright Fellow at AIMS and James Cook University. Under the guidance of Pam Morris of MUSC, Joe is working to develop tools to accurately diagnose coral diseases on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and around the world.  Currently, the diagnostic tools are very limited, so coral diseases are distinguished almost exclusively on their macroscopic appearance.  He is focusing his efforts on developing a technique to detect the pathogen responsible for the coral disease White Syndrome on the GBR and coral bleaching in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean.  His research is progressing well and bioassays are underway to test the tool’s effectiveness in vivo.

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