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

The Covid-19 pandemic has brought the human immune system to the forefront of our collective consciousness, and while corals do not suffer from Covid-19, they do have an immune system that we desperately need to understand because they are affected by many other diseases. Dr. Traylor-Knowles uses cutting edge medical technology to study the immune systems of corals to discover the unique and surprising ways in which corals combat disease and identify friend from foe. Her work is contributing to the fight to save coral reefs and insure that we have these ecosystems in the future.

Nikki Traylor-Knowles, Ph.D., is a cell biologist that studies the evolution of immunity, wound healing, and regeneration of cnidarians, a group of over 9,000 marine species which includes corals, jellyfish, sea anemones, sea whips and fans. Her lab uses techniques from cell biology, genomics, microbiology, and molecular biology to study the cnidarian innate immune system and its interaction with climate change and other human induced stressors. Dr. Traylor-Knowles is interested in the application of these techniques to conservation efforts through the development of biomarkers for predicting health outcomes in corals in the face of climate change and disease.