Current Members

BRANDI KIEL REESE
Principal Investigator

Dr. Kiel Reese is a microbial ecologist and biogeochemist trained at Texas A&M University. She uses advanced molecular techniques to interrogate cellular life in the sediment and in extreme environments such as the marine deep subsurface and underwater mud volcanoes. 

PENNY DEMETRIADES
​PhD Candidate

Penny is interested in the interactions between marine ecosystems and anthropogenic threats. In the Kiel Reese lab, she is utilizing molecular microbial source tracking techniques to investigate sources of pathogens and fecal-associated bacteria to Mobile Bay, with the goal of improving community and ecosystem health.

RACHEL WEISEND
PhD Candidate

Rachel graduated with her BS in Biological Science at Florida State University working with bioactive trace metals in the Pacific and Indian ocean while minoring in Chemistry and Spanish. She is currently finishing her PhD with Dr. Kiel Reese investigating how microbial communities drive methane production and consumption in mangrove wetlands. Rachel is passionate about data visualization, interdisciplinary sciences, and improving science communication between researchers, policy makers, and the public.

BRIANNA JANSSEN
Master's Student

Brianna graduated with her BS in Marine Science from the University of Southern Mississippi. During her time as an undergraduate, she worked as a teaching assistant for Chemistry I and II. She is currently working towards her Master's in Marine Conservation and Resource Management with the long-term goal of becoming a Restoration Project Manager. She is currently working alongside Dr. Kiel Reese and several other colleagues on an EPA-funded microbial source tracking project as the curator for the Alabama Microbial Source Tracking (MST) Metadata Clearinghouse

PRIYA GILMAN
​PhD Student

Priya is a PhD student researching the connection between microbes and reverse weathering reactions in the northern Gulf of Mexico. She got her undergraduate degree in Marine Science/Chemistry from the University of Alabama and researched eDNA there. After graduating, she worked at the Illinois River Biological Station collecting and processing fish, zooplankton, and water quality samples. She is co-advised by Dr. Brandi Kiel Reese and Dr. Jeffrey Krause.

KENDALL BRELAND
​PhD Student

Kendall graduated with her B.S. in Soil and Water Science from the University of Florida. She is currently working in both the Kiel Reese and Krause labs studying Silica and the creation of authigenic products as well as the role microbes play in this cycle. Kendall is excited to bring her background in soil science to oceanographic sediments and combine knowledge of the two fields to help create an interdisciplinary perspective. 

HEAVEN POLLARD
​BOATS Intern

Heaven recently graduated with a degree in Biology and a minor in Environmental Science, from the University of Alabama A&M. With a passion for research and environmental preservation, She is currently expanding hands-on experience by working with DISL BOATS Program, focusing on marine ecosystems. Committed to advancing scientific understanding, Heaven aims to contribute to solutions that address environmental challenges and foster sustainability.

LYDIA HAYES-GUASTELLA
​PhD Student

Lydia graduated with her BS in Microbiology from Michigan State University, working with microbial communities in terrestrial serpentinizing systems. She obtained her MS in Marine Biology from Texas A&M University- Corpus Christi, studying nitrogen cycling in restored and natural wetlands influenced by wastewater treatment plants. She is currently working toward her PhD in Marine Science studying microbial communities in serpentinite mud volcanoes of the Mariana Forearc. Her research interests are microbial communities in extreme environments and how they relate to nutrient cycling dynamics.

MARLEE MIMS
​PhD Student

Marlee graduated with her BS in Biology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, with concentrations in Marine Science and Molecular Biology and minors in Environmental Science and Chemistry. During this time, her research focused on fitness of diamondback terrapin hatchlings. She also completed her MS in Biology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, working in a research lab focused on aquaculture and nutrition. She studied factors that influence feed intake and satiety in the variegated sea urchin. She currently works at the U.S. FDA Gulf Coast Seafood Laboratory where her research focus is seafood decomposition. She studies bacteria responsible for decomposition and the associated chemicals these bacteria produce with an ultimate goal to promote food safety and quality in seafood(s). She is currently working towards a PhD in Marine Science in the Kiel Reese lab, partnering with the FDA to study decomposition-associated bacterial communities in seafood with a goal of developing biomarkers of decomposition using molecular tools. 

KATIE HOWE
Postdoctoral Scholar

Dr. Howe is a bioinformatician and microbial oceanographer. She used computational methods to elucidate novel hydrocarbon degrading microbes in the Gulf of Mexico and global ocean for her PhD research at Florida State University. In the Kiel Reese lab, she will utilize her bioinformatics and laboratory skills to work on two NSF-funded projects: microbial methane cycling in Ross Sea sediments and microbial effects on reverse weathering in the Mississippi River plume (with Jeffrey Krause’s lab).

KRISTEN LAMPRECHT
PhD Student

Kristen graduated from California State University, Monterey Bay with a B.S. in marine science, a minor in chemistry, and an A.S. in biology. Her interest in deep sea exploration has transitioned to a focus for exploring the many adaptations of marine microbes (bacteria, archaea, viruses) thriving in extreme environments along the seafloor. After her work as a technician at the Kiel Reese lab, she was accepted into its marine science Ph.D program as a graduate student from the University of South Alabama. Her focus lies on exploring the microbial community dynamics associated with methane cycling and their production along the Alaska North Slope. Her special focus involves studying methane hydrates, a solidified form of vital energy for bacteria and archaea communities to classify their level of impact and movement along sediments. To find these interactions, she will be using both culture-dependent, and culture-independent methods in a sterile lab environment. 

TARAVIA MADISON
​Lab Manager

My name is Taravia Madison and I am originally from Mobile, Alabama. I received my bachelor's degree in biology with a minor in chemistry from The University of Alabama at Birmingham. I am currently working on my masters in conservation biology at the University of West Alabama. While doing so, I am now part of the Kiel Reese lab as a lab manager as I look forward to furthering my career. 

Former Members

Graduate students

LAURA ZINKE, PhD

Laura completed her PhD at the University of Southern California, where she studied the microbial ecology and biogeochemistry of marine sediments. She focused mainly on sediments deeply buried in the Baltic Sea and on/near Dorado Outcrop in the Eastern Tropical North Pacific. She undertook her postdoctoral research at the University of California, Davis, USA, where she investigated the viral communities residing in agricultural soils. She has been a professional editor with Nature Reviews Earth & Environment since March 2019.

CHRISTIAN CUNNINGHAM, MS

I attended CSU, Fresno where I worked in a research lab focused on antibiotic resistance. While working with Dr. Kiel Reese I researched methanotrophic bacteria and correlations between methane consumption and transcript abundance as well as genomics of isolates obtained via single cell sorting. Now I get to share my passion for biology with others as a science teacher. 

RACHEL WOODWORTH, MS

MORGAN SOBOL, PhD

Morgan completed her B.S. (2016) and M.S. (2018) at Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi where she studied the microbial communities of the marine subsurface, namely within the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the South Pacific gyre, under Dr. Brandi Kiel Reese. Then, she went on to do her PhD at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany with Dr. Anne-Kristin Kaster focusing on improving and developing single-cell 'omic methods for microorganisms, which she completed in 2022. Since February 2023, Morgan has been a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Betül Kaçar's lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she studies the co-evolution of nitrogen fixation and early Earth's environment. Recently, she was awarded a NASA Postdoctoral Program Fellowship for this project, which she will begin in May 2023. 

MEGAN MULLIS, PhD

After being raised in Nashville, Tennessee and isolated from the world's oceans, I wanted to pursue a degree in marine biology. I attended the University of Southern Mississippi and received my Bachelor's in Marine Biology in 2016. As an undergraduate, I worked in Dr. Mohamed Elasri's lab to research virulence factors in Staphylococcus aureus and persistent infections in mice. After my undergraduate degree, I wanted to pursue a doctorate in marine biology and focus on environmental microbiology. Fortunately, Dr. Brandi Kiel Reese was looking for graduate students and was a perfect advisor for me. I pursued my doctorate from 2016 - 2021 at Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi focusing on microbial ecology in the marine deep subsurface. My research chapters focused on the active microbial community in the Mariana Forearc through metatranscriptomics from samples collected on the International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition 366. I also analyzed various metagenomic datasets from continental and marine subsurface environments for various geochemical cycles (O, N, S, and C cycles) and potential secondary metabolisms. After graduating in 2021, I moved my cats and myself to Worcester, Massachusetts for a postdoctoral position at Clark University with Dr. Nathan Ahlgren. While at Clark, I cultured over 200 Synechococcus isolates from Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island and determined which isolates were susceptible to which clade of cyanophages within the community. In the summer of 2022, I began working for the Department of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts as a Laboratory Supervisor for environmental air quality. When I am not working, I enjoy time with my cat kiddos Oscar Meyer, Trooper George, and Momo and exploring my new home of Boston!

Undergraduate Students

Shannon Kille (Gulf Scholar, 2024-2025)

Whitney Spencer (DISL REU, 2024)

Samantha Jerry (Summer intern, 2023)

​Aaron Seay (Summer intern, 2023)

Yasmin Hall (DISL REU, 2022)

Kahylin Nesbitt (DISL REU, 2021)

Erica Duncan (TAMU-CC, LSAMP Scholar, 2019-2020)

John Turman (TAMU-CC, 2019-2020)

Victor Delgado (TAMU-CC, 2018-2020)

Clay Clarkson (TAMU-CC, McNair Scholar, 2017-2019)

​Susan McGuire (TAMU-CC, 2018-2019)

Ryan Cabico (Del Mar Community College, REU, 2018)

Reesen Caster (TAMU-CC, 2017-2018)

Brooke Denney (TAMU-CC, LSAMP Scholar, 2017-2018)

Mayra Rodriguez Gomez (TAMU-CC, LSAMP Scholar, 2016-2017)

Shalecia Sayles (TAMU-CC, LSAMP Scholar, 2015-2017)

Reavelyn Pray (Del Mar Community College, 2016)

Julie Rohl (TAMU-CC, 2015-2016)

Morgan Sobol (TAMU-CC, LSAMP Scholar, 2015-2016)

Alexis Ybanez (TAMU-CC, LSAMP Scholar, 2015-2016)

Gustavo Cavahalo (USC, 2012-2014) 

Jordan Hoese (USC, 2012-2014)

James Stone (USC, 2013-2014)

Cruz St. Peter (TAMU, 2009-2011)

Laura Zinke (TAMU, 2009-2011)

Stacey Moeller (TAMU, 2009-2010)

Kristyn Kimball (TAMU, 2008-2009) 

​Bianca Romero (TAMU, 2008-2009)

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