Education:
Ph. D. Microbiology (2015-present)
Université Laval (Québec, Canada)
Advisors: Alexander I. Culley, Warwick F. Vincent
Thesis topic: Diversity and dynamics of aquatic viruses in the Canadian High Arctic

B. Sc. Microbiology (2012-2015) Université Laval (Québec, Canada)
Minor: Profil International  (Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium) (Fall 2014)

Double DEC in Natural sciences and Languages (2009-2012)
Cégep de Lévis-Lauzon (Lévis, Canada)

 

Research experience
Ward Hunt Island sampling expedition (Summer 2015) (Nunavut)
Warwick F. Vincent’s team

Research project (Fall 2014): Diversity of DNA and RNA viruses infecting phytoplanckton in the St. Lawrence River. (Pr. Alexander Culley, GREB, Université Laval)

• Samples collected from marinas and small boats for filtration
• Filters extracted and assayed with degenerate primers for RNA and DNA virus molecular markers
• Amplicons prepared for sequencing on Illumina sequencing platform
•  Data analysis and subsequent manuscript preparation ongoing

Research project (2013-2014): The polysaccharide pellicle in Lactococcus lactis and phage adsorption. (Pr. Sylvain Moineau, GREB, Université Laval)

• Quantify phage adsorption to various bacterial strains
• Extract bacterial DNA, design primers and prepare PCR
• Highlight nucleotide differences between the strains’ pellicle clusters
• Present and discuss preliminary results in lab meetings

Field course (winter 2012): Feeding habits of hummingbirds (Costa Rica, Finca La Suerte)

• Participate in experimental design, select sampling sites and set an observation schedule
• Develop an identification key to the local species of hummingbirds
• Data collection and analysis

 

Research interests
Microbial ecology
Metagenomics
Aquatic ecology
Limnology
Arctic ecosystems
Environmental virology
Virus-host interactions
Auxiliary metabolic genes

 

Publications
McCabe O, Spinelli S, Farenc C, Labbé M, Tremblay D, Blangy S, Oscarson S, Moineau S, Cambillau C. 2015. The targeted recognition of Lactococcus lactis phages to their polysaccharide receptors. Mol Microbiol 96:875-886.