Sea Secrets Lecture: Danielle McDonald Professor UM Rosenstiel School

Danielle McDonald, Professor, Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, UM Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science

Stressed, Depressed and Angry: What Toadfish Can Teach Us About Human Health and Disease

Fish can sometimes make better models for mammal health and disease than your typical white laboratory rat. Dr. Danielle McDonald will present her research that uses the unique characteristics of a local, highly aggressive marine fish called the Gulf toadfish to investigate how oil exposure effects the bottlenose dolphin stress response, why human brains swell during liver failure, and what the serotonin transporter, the target of antidepressants, is doing to control blood pressure.

McDonald is an expert in fish physiology and behavior and her research program investigates the role of cortisol, a hormone that is elevated in response to stress, and serotonin, a neurotransmitter most commonly known for its role in depression, in fish during times of environmental stress. The research conducted by her lab not only advances our understanding of fish, but can also be applied to marine mammal or human health. Fish and other aquatic organisms can make better health models than other mammals. McDonald is an award-winning teacher and mentor, teaching several senior-level undergraduate courses and mentoring both undergraduates and graduate students in laboratory research. She is committed to communicating science in a fun, accessible way, with the goal of her educational and outreach activities always being the four Es: educate, engage, excite and empower.

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