Research Assistant & Doctoral Student
Degree: Engineering Science

Fellowships & Grants:
NSF Bridge to the Doctorate
Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship

Internships:
Research Alliance in Math & Science(RAMS), Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Education:
BS Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, 2000
MS Old Dominion University, 2007

Research Interests:
Andrea's research interest focuses on characterizing microbial communities and function in sub-surface contaminated sediments in order to improve bioremediation efforts. In particular, she is working with Shewanella oneidensis MR-1, a bacteria capable of utilizing a wide variety of compounds (i.e. Cr (VI)) to meet its energy and growth requirements. Current studies include: 1) Reconstruct the metabolic pathways of multiple Shewanella strains to characterize the metabolic capabilities, and (2)Evaluate the use of molecular biology based techniques to improve bioremediation efforts of heavy metals. As part of her research, she will use RT-RiboSyn to measure the specific growth rate of microbial populations in sub-surface contaminated sediments.

Research Topics:
Microbiology


Advisors:
Peter G. Stroot, PhD
Ashanti Pyrtle, PhD


Contact Information:
amrocha@mail.usf.edu