Trish J. Moore
Trish earned a Ph.D. in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology from the University of Colorado, Boulder. She was a faculty member at the University of Manchester and the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom before joining the Department of Entomology at UGA. Her current research focuses on how reproductive physiology interacts with selection and life history.
Collaborator
Allen J. Moore
Allen and Trish have collaborated across their careers. Their most recent joint project is to combine molecular tools such as RNAi with foundational research into the role of epigenetic control of gametogenesis and evolutionary and population genetics to develop effective biocontrol strategies for whitefly.
Research Professional
Libby McKinney
Libby received her B.S. and M.S in Botany and Biology from Texas A & M. She spent over 30 years in the Department of Genetics at the University of Georgia, where she joined Allen Moore’s laboratory, bringing molecular tools to the burying beetle project. She now works with both Trish and Allen on applying RNAi to biocontrol of the whitefly and furthering our mechanistic understanding of the functional role of DNMT1 in gametogenesis in the large
milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus.
Graduate Students
Emily Shelby
Emily joined us from Mississippi State in January 2020 after completing her B.S. and M.S. in Biology where she investigated structural coloration in butterflies. Emily is currently working towards a Ph.D. in Entomology. Her research is investigating the use of DNMT1 as a target gene for RNAi biocontrol of whiteflies. She is also studying the functional role of DNMT1 in gametogenesis in hemipterans.
Recent former lab members
Shannon Harris
Shannon received her B.S. degree in Genetics from the University of Georgia with research experience studying embryo mortality and host mate choice in Drosophila recens and D. subquinaria. Shannon completed her M.S. degree in Entomology in 2022. Her research investigated the interaction between male competition and parental care of Nicrophorus orbicollis. Shannon is now working towards her PhD in the Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Department at Texas A&M University.
Jen Moss
Jen earned her Ph.D. in Biology at Mississippi State University studying the genetics and ecology of Sister Isle Rock Iguanas. She was awarded an Endeavour Fellowship to work with the The Behavioural and Evolutionary Ecology Research (BEER) Group at the University of Tasmania before joining the Moore Labs. Jen worked with Trish on the application of population genetics to biocontrol strategies in whiteflies as well as with Allen on behavioral plasticity, parental care, and climate change in burying beetles. Jen is currently working in the lab of Eva Fischer at the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana as an NSF Postdoctoral Fellow.
Joshua Washington
Joshua graduated with an undergraduate degree in Biology from UGA. Joshua did undergraduate research with Trish examining the role of the maintenance methyltransferase DNMT1 in oogenesis in milkweed bugs, Oncopeltus. He graduated with his M.S. degree in Entomology in Spring, 2021. His MS research extended his studies investigating the role of DNMT1 in male fertility. Joshua’s first paper from his MS links developmental timing of meiosis and impact of Dnmt1 knockdown on testis structure and male fertility. Joshua will be joining the Medical College of Georgia in the Fall. He plans to put his talent for micro-dissections to work as an ophthalmology surgeon.
Ashley Amukamara
Ashley did her honors thesis with Trish on the functional role of DNMT1 in oogenesis in Oncopeltus. This work was published in Frontiers in Ecology & Evolution. Ashley also did undergraduate research in Allen’s lab on the cold-breeding burying beetle, Nicrophorus sayi, published in Ecological Entomology. Ashley is currently in medical school at Washington University in St. Louis.
Katelyn Cavender
Katie did her honors thesis with Trish on the functional role of DNMT1 in spermatogenesis in adult male Oncopeltus. She showed that sperm depleted males in which Dnmt1 expression is downregulated are unable to replenish sperm stores and become sperm limited, contributing to our paper on Dnmt1 knockdown and male fertility. Katie is currently working at the Center for Disease Control and plans to pursue a Ph.D. in the future.
Zachary Sanchez
Zach worked with Trish’s lab while completing his undergraduate degree with a double major in Biology and Entomology. Zach first investigated the effect of diet on sperm numbers in Oncopeltus, contributing to a publication in Ecology and Evolution. He then worked with Trish to develop the use of RNAi to downregulate Dnmt1 in Oncopeltus and analyzed the effect on oogenesis and embryo development, work that was published in Epigenetics & Chromatin and Frontiers in Ecology & Evolution. Zach recently started a Ph.D. program at Vanderbilt University.
