College of Agriculture & Natural Resources Department of Fisheries and Wildlife

Major Advisor:

Tyler Buchinger

Background:

Kristen is a staff researcher and graduate student in the Li lab, where she manages day-to-day operations of their lab and fish aquaculture facilities. The lab seeks to understand the genomic underpinnings of sea lamprey biology, aiming to inform possible future sea lamprey control efforts in the Great Lakes. Kristen's research uses CRISPR gene editing technology to investigate sea lamprey functional genomics, focusing on genes involved in early development and male reproduction.

Kristen received her B.S. in Environmental Biology from Michigan State University in 2022. As an undergraduate, she investigated signal preference, mate choice, and genetic mechanisms of sex determination in Mormyrid weakly electric fishes (MSU Integrative Biology, Gallant Lab). After graduating, she worked with the Li lab conducting behavior trials with adult sea lamprey in northern Michigan, managed a captive colony of zebrafish for CRISPR studies investigating nervous system development (MSU Integrative Biology, Ganz Lab), and spent a summer at Southern Illinois University surveying large river fish communities and sampling for invasive silver carp on the Illinois and Wabash Rivers.

Growing up in West Michigan, Kristen has a deep personal connection with the Great Lakes and its flora and fauna. With her graduate work, she seeks to help conserve and protect the region's freshwater resources for generations to come. In her free time, Kristen enjoys hiking, fishing, and gardening.