[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
Alaina Weinheimer
Biological Sciences
she/her
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]
Alaina joined the Aylward Lab in Fall of 2018, focusing on microbial ecology and evolution. Particularly fascinated by the roles of viruses in the ocean, Alaina now examines how bacteriophages (viruses of bacteria) impact the evolution and composition of microbial communities, which drive biogeochemical cycles and underly food webs in the ocean. She is also curious how phages can help protect marine animals by killing both pathogenic bacteria and algae that form blooms.
While pursuing her bachelor’s degree in Biology at Penn State, she worked in coral reef ecology labs where she was exposed to the numerous threats to coral and the potential roles of microbes and viruses in mediating or exacerbating these threats.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”54109″ img_size=”275×355″ alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_border”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
Minoring in Microbiology, she wanted to further explore the impacts of microbes in the ocean and went on to complete her Master’s degree in Marine Microbiology at the Max Planck Institute in Bremen, Germany. For her master’s thesis project, she used metagenomic data to investigate how viruses affect the microbiome of deep sea mussels at hydrothermal vents. Working on this project exposed her to both the advantages and challenges of applying computational approaches to microbial ecology.
Inspired by the power of computational approaches to answering questions in viral ecology, Alaina is working in the Aylward Lab with the goal of developing novel methods in computational biology to address questions in environmental virology. Specifically, she is focusing on elucidating the roles of jumbo bacteriophages (genomes > 200,000 basepairs, roughly 10x the size of coronavirsues, for perspective) which have been systematically overlooked by traditional methods in virology due to their large particle sizes. She plans to explore the structure and function of viral communities, their phylogenetic diversity, and their role in mediating environmental change. Her interest in environmental disturbances led her to enroll in the Interfaces of Global Change Program, to improve her understanding of both their environmental and societal impacts. Her overarching goal is to supplement ecosystem management strategies and environmental policies with viral and microbial knowledge – all with the hopes of improving sustainability and environmental stewardship.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator style=”shadow”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
In the News
IGC GSO transitions to new officers for 2020-2021
Tweet led student to a project untangling the genomes of large viruses
IGC Seminar Reflection Series: Navigating elephants in the room[/vc_column_text][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]