News
Last updated: 8/1/24
July 2024
Cawa Tran partnered with the Ocean Discovery Institute in City Heights to bring Hoover High students to the USD campus to conduct research on pathogen entry into Aiptasia. Fun fact: Dr. Tran is originally from City Heights and it meant a lot to work with these kids from the same neighborhood! The research project was inspired by work completed by Aidan Jacobs Walker, who created this awesome video summary below which Dr. Tran debuted to the students.
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June 2024
Kayla Phan presented her poster on "The effects of beneficial and pathogenic marine bacteria on the sea anemone Exaiptasia diaphana" at the AAAS Pacific Division conference in San Diego, CA and won the 2nd Place Award for Excellence in the category of Environment & Ecology. Congratulations!
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Gavin McLaren gave an excellent talk (first one ever!) on "Exploring bacterial interactions with dinoflagellates in response to photosynthetic inhibition" at the AAAS Pacific Division conference.
Navah Eshraghi presented on "Endozoicomonas strikes back: Can coral-benefitting bacteria preserve algal-symbiosis in heat-stressed anemones?" at the AAAS Pacific Division conference.
April 2024
Aidan Jacobs Walker and Navah Eshraghi presented scientific talks at the 2024 West Coast Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference (WCBSURC) in Santa Clara, CA, each supported by a USD Associated Student Government (ASG) Travel Award. Congratulations!
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Aidan spoke about "Food poisoning in anemones: The effect of feeding activity on the colonization of a pathogen in Exaiptasia diaphana" at WCBSURC. This same project also won an ASG Research Award back home at USD. Congratulations on the double award!
Navah presented on "Endozoicomonas strikes back: Can coral-benefitting bacteria preserve algal-symbiosis in heat-stressed anemones?" at WCBSURC and won the award for Best Talk in the category of Ecology and Evolution. Congratulations on this huge achievement out of the 101 student talks delivered this year at this regional meeting!
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Kayla Phan presented her poster on "The effects of beneficial and pathogenic marine bacteria on the sea anemone Exaiptasia diaphana" at the 2024 National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) Conference in Long Beach, CA, supported by a USD Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR) Travel Award! Congratulations!
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We also celebrate Research Month at USD with some videos featuring various members of our lab--Cawa Tran, Kayla Phan, and Hennry Rodriguez! Check these out below!
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March 2024
Cawa Tran and colleagues at Stanford published a manuscript on "Photosynthesis and other factors affecting the establishment and maintenance of cnidarian-dinoflagellate symbiosis" in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. This paper challenges previous ideas about the role of photosynthesis and algal-cell size in symbiosis establishment through detailed confocal-microscopic analyses and long-term maintenance of anemones in the dark!
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Congratulations to Kayla Phan on receiving a competitive Summer Training in Advanced Research (STAR) award to support her project this summer, one that she wrote an excellent research proposal for!
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Congratulations to Julian Fairbanks on receiving a competitive Beginning Undergraduate Research Summer Training (BURST) award to support his research experience in the Tran Lab this summer!
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Congratulations to Madison Santos on receiving a competitive McNair Scholars Program award to support her research experience and mentorship under Dr. Tran for this summer and the following academic year!
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The story of Cawa Tran's academic and personal journey is brought to life with a short video documentary created by Elena Gomez, Associate Director of USD Media Relations, that takes you through Dr. Tran's early childhood through all the symbiotic relationships she's had in her life with her parents, teachers/mentors, and now her students that have led her to do the kind of work she does today with undergraduates at USD.
October 2023
Kayla Phan presented her poster on "The effects of beneficial and pathogenic marine bacteria on the sea anemone Exaiptasia diaphana" at the 2023 SACNAS/National Diversity in STEM (NDiSTEM) Conference in Portland, OR, supported by a Travel Scholarship! Congratulations!
August 2023
Kayla Phan made an entertaining, enthusiastic, and endearing TikTok video of a "Day in My Life as an Undergrad Researcher," capturing all the excitement (and nuances) of doing scientific research! We've had fun hosting Kayla in the Tran Lab as part of the Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) program at USD. Click on "Join the Lab" above to learn more about how you can be a part of this journey in using an anemone model to learn about coral reefs!
July 2023
USD Media Relations and Digital Communications teams visited the Tran Lab for the first time and got to meet Cawa Tran, our brilliant student researchers, and, of course, the anemones! We discussed the use of Aiptasia as a laboratory model for coral research and the importance of science communication to the general public!
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Later in the month, Cawa, Kayla, and Hennry did interviews with Kelsey Grey (USD Digital Communications) and showcased the integrative lab techniques we use to study Aiptasia, connecting it with the larger picture of coral bleaching and global climate change.
June 2023
The Tran Lab had the pleasure of hosting Joel Barkan, Education Manager from the Ocean Discovery Institute, at USD as he learns about the student projects that can be done with Aiptasia and how those can be adapted to high school programs. He had a chance to speak with our two newest undergraduate researchers, Kayla and Hennry!
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Congratulations to Kayla Phan on receiving a competitive Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) award to support her project, one that she developed on her own and wrote an excellent research proposal for!
Congratulations to Hennry Rodriguez on receiving a Pre-Undergraduate Research Experience (PURE) award to support his project and opportunity to conduct research before his first year at USD even begins!
May 2023
Cawa Tran, along former students Jamison Sydnor and Jaime Lopez, plus collaborators at Chico State published an original research article entitled, "Changes in the microbiome of the sea anemone Exaiptasia diaphana during bleaching from short-term thermal elevation" in Frontiers in Marine Science, featuring an acetylene reduction assay designed specifically for Aiptasia to examine nitrogen-fixation activity. This is also the first study to find archaea indirectly associated with this important lab model!
Cawa Tran contributed to the manuscript "Building consensus around the assessment and interpretation of Symbiodiniaceae diversity" as a result of an inspiring multi-day discussion in an NSF-funded workshop that gathered 61 researchers together in this field.
December 2022
Cawa Tran received a Faculty Research Grant from the Office of the Provost to support her ongoing research on Aiptasia and mentorship of student researchers at USD!
November 2022
As an invited panelist, Cawa Tran spoke about Aiptasia being used as a model system for research on climage-change impacts to coral reefs at “Natural Landscapes and Human Meanings Series: The Ocean,” held at the USD Humanities Center.
August 2022
The Tran Lab has relocated to the University of San Diego, where Dr. Cawa Tran is now an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology within the College of Arts and Sciences. Undergraduates interested in doing research in this lab should contact Dr. Tran!
February 2022
September 2021
Cawa Tran receives a Faculty Research Incentive Award from the CSU Water Resources and Policy Initiatives program to characterize pathogenicity of microbes in coastal waters using a sea-anemone model.
August 2021
Cawa Tran is an invited participant of the NSF-supported Symbiodiniaceae Diversity Workshop held virtually among experts in this field.
May 2021
Cawa Tran is awarded a CSU Program for Education & Research in Biotechnology (CSUPERB) New Investigator Grant to study nitrogen-fixing bacteria (diazotrophs) associated with the sea anemone Aiptasia
Kaitlyn Romo won Best Graduate Research Poster at the 25th Annual CSU Chico Biology Student Research Symposium
January 2020
Cawa Tran and her laboratory research on the Aiptasia microbiome and use of microfluidics are featured in Lab Animal, a Nature Research journal, along with some of the leading researchers studying Aiptasia and Astrangia as models for coral research
Cora Piper is recipient of the CSU Council on Ocean Affairs, Science & Technology (COAST) Undergraduate Student Research Support Program Award
December 2019
Jaime Lopez is recipient of the CSU Chico Graduate Equity Fellowship
Kate Romo is recipient of the CSU Chico Student Award for Research and Creativity and the Association of Environmental Professionals scholarship
August 2019
Cawa Tran is invited Keynote Speaker at the annual "Jumpstart" event as part of CSU Chico's TRIO Educational Talent Search program, addressing incoming freshmen of Fall 2019
Brooke Hoffe and Madison Gutierrez presented two research talks at the Chico STEM Connections Collaborative Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium
June 2019
Cawa Tran and Stanford colleagues published the manuscript entitled "Live imaging of Aiptasia larvae, a model system for studying coral and anemone bleaching, using a simple microfluidic device" in Scientific Reports
Cawa Tran is awarded a STEM-NET Mini Grant by the CSU STEM-NET Steering Committee and Consortium Presidents to study microbes associated with the sea anemone Aiptasia
May 2019
Cawa Tran, with Dr. Polly Fordyce and colleagues at Stanford, recently had their manuscript entitled "Live imaging of Aiptasia larvae, a model system for studying coral and anemone bleaching, using a simple microfluidic device" accepted for publication in Scientific Reports
Jamison Sydnor presented a research talk and Brooke Hoffe a research poster at the 9th Annual Yosemite Symbiosis Workshop
Cawa Tran is invited Keynote Speaker at this year's Asian & Pacific Islander Graduation Celebration, addressing the Class of 2019
Kelli Thorup and Brooke Hoffe are this year's recipients of the Michael Abruzzo Outstanding Scientist Award at the 23rd Annual CSU Chico Biology Student Research Symposium
Jamison Sydnor, Kelsey Dani, Brooke Hoffe, Kelly Thorup, Cora Piper, and John Vang presented posters at the 23rd Annual CSU Chico Biology Student Research Symposium
New graduate students Jaime Lopez and Kaitlyn Romo (to join Fall 2019) are recipients of the Academic and Performance Scholarship and Outstanding New & Promising Student Award, respectively
April 2019
Jamison Sydnor, Kelsey Dani, Brooke Hoffe, Kelly Thorup, Cora Piper, and John Vang presented posters at the 15th Annual CSU Chico College of Natural Sciences Poster Symposium
Kelli Thorup is recipient of the CSU Chico Student Award for Research and Creativity
Cawa Tran is awarded a Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity (RSCA) grant at CSU Chico to study cnidarian-bacterial interactions in the sea anemone Aiptasia
March 2019
Cawa Tran is invited speaker to the Molecular Cell Biology seminar at CSU Sacramento where she discussed the "Host-microbe interactions in a sea anemone: A key to saving coral reefs"
Jamison Sydnor and Cora Piper are recipients of the CSU Chico Student Awards for Research and Creativity
February 2019
Cawa Tran is invited panelist at the Women's Leadership Roundtable at CSU Chico for a conversation on how international culture affects women's education and leadership
Cawa Tran is invited as a discussion leader at the first-ever, campus-wide "Women Like You" Leadership Symposium at CSU Chico
January 2019
Brooke Hoffe and Cora Piper are recipients of the CSU Council on Ocean Affairs, Science & Technology (COAST) Undergraduate Student Research Support Program Awards
December 2018
Jamison Sydnor passes his qualifying exam and is advanced to candidacy
October 2018
Jamison Sydnor is awarded 1st place in the Aquaneering 2019 Art of Science Photomicrography Contest
August 2018
Cawa Tran submitted a manuscript entitled "Live imaging of Aiptasia larvae, a model system for studying coral bleaching, using a simple microfluidic device"
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Cawa Tran gives talk on the first day of the Fall semester at EDXCHICO on how she went from being a first-generation student to an educator and researcher at Chico State studying symbiosis
July 2018
Cawa Tran presented a lightning talk on current and past research at the Aiptasia Workshop in Corvallis, OR
Jamison Sydnor, Gavin Monges, and Ashley Dearden presented their research projects at the poster session of the International Symbiosis Society (ISS) Congress in Corvallis, OR
Jamison Sydnor wins 3rd place in the graduate division of the 2018 ISS Photo Contest for his fluorescence micrograph of the temperate anemone Anthopleura elegantissima
Ashley Dearden wins 1st place in the undergraduate division of the 2018 ISS Photo Contest for her photograph of the lichen symbiosis
May 2018
Jamison Sydnor (graduate student), Gavin Monges (Cellular and Molecular Biology major), and Ashley Dearden (Microbiology major) presented posters at the annual CSU Chico Biology Student Research Symposium
Ashley Dearden accepted a competitive Research & Development Internship at the Sierra Nevada Brewery for Summer 2018
Ashley Dearden and Brooke Hoffe (both Microbiology majors) are recipients of the Duane Durkee Memorial Scholarship
Cawa Tran is awarded a Faculty Travel Grant from the ​CSU Program for Education & Research in Biotechnology (CSUPERB) to attend the International Symbiosis Society Congress in Corvallis, OR in July 2018
April 2018
Gavin Monges and Ashley Dearden are recipients of the CSU Chico Student Awards for Research and Creativity
Ashley Dearden is the recipient of the Floyd L. English Natural Sciences Scholarship
Jamison Sydnor, Brooke Hoffe, and Gavin Monges participated in Chico Preview Day and Omicron Science Night to showcase the anemone room and research to prospective students and their parents touring the campus
January 2018
Gavin Monges is the recipient of the CSU Council on Ocean Affairs, Science & Technology (COAST) Undergraduate Student Research Support Program Award
December 2017
Cawa Tran and colleagues at Stanford University and the Carnegie Institution for Science published a manuscript titled “Glucose-induced trophic shift in Symbiodinium and its physiological and molecular consequences” in Plant Physiology
July 2017
Cawa Tran joins the Department of Biological Sciences at CSU Chico as new faculty