Undergradaute Researchers

A large number of exceptionally talented undergraduates work in the Barber Lab. Read more about our current and former students, below.


Denisse Aparicio

Denisse Aparicio is a 2nd year molecular biology major who joined the lab in Spring of 2018. The project she is working on involves the effect of environmental stressors on gut-associated bacterial communities of coral reef fish. In the future, she hopes to attend graduate school to further study molecular biology.


Rosalie Brodersen
Rosalie Brodersen recently graduated from UCLA with a B.S. in Biology. After getting hooked on Marine Biology, she joined the Barber Lab in the summer of 2018 and has been studying of fish gut microbial communities. She hopes to go to graduate graduate school  in environmental or marine conservation.

Lennice Castro
Lennice Castro is a 3rd year Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics (MIMG) major who joined the Barber Lab in Fall 2017. She is studying  how reef habitats shape fish gut microbiomes. After graduation, she hopes to attend graduate

school to continue studying Microbiology.


Ariana de Souza
Ariana de Souza is a Biology major who joined the Barber Lab in 2018. She studies  the relationship between diet and  microbiomes in coral reef fish. After graduation, she plans on pursuing graduate studies in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology to promote  sustainability.

Bridget Foy

Bridget Foy is a second year Marine Biology major who joined Barber lab in Winter 2018. The research she works on uses environmental DNA to assess marine biodiversity changes due to external stressors. Upon graduation, she plans to attend graduate school in Marine Biology and pursue a PhD to become a researcher or professor.


Jack Garrett

Jack Garrett is a third year marine biology major that joined the lab in Fall of 2018. He currently works on projects that use eDNA to assess marine biodiversity patterns in California and Indonesia, and also focuses on using eDNA to detect endangered species in vernal pools. He plans to pursue a career in trauma surgery after he graduates and also hopes to get his masters in marine biology to continue his passion for marine research.


Kory Lupica

Kory Lupica recently graduated from UCLA with a degree in Biology.  He joined the lab in the Winter of 2018 and is currently working on research involving differences in the gut microbiome of fish with respect to anthropogenic activity.  In the future, he hopes to use his knowledge of biology to fasten the connection between human health and the health of biological ecosystems.


McKenzie Koch

McKenzie Koch is a first year Marine Biology major. She joined the Barber Lab in January 2018, and is working with Zack Gold on environmental DNA (eDNA) projects. After graduation, she hopes to pursue a PhD, become a professor, and conduct her own research to restore coral reefs.


Markus Min

Markus Min is a third-year marine biology major who has been with the Barber Lab since the beginning of 2018. His current work concerns the use of eDNA in marine conservation, and he has worked on projects including the use of eDNA to monitor endangered species of fairy shrimp in vernal pools, eDNA degradation rates, and the applications of eDNA for assessing marine biodiversity in Indonesia. He is interested in a future career in fisheries science and management, and plans to focus his own research in the lab on the potential of eDNA for stock assessments in marine fisheries management by examining the relationship between the quantity of eDNA in marine environments and species abundance.


Keira Monuki

Keira Monuki is a 3rd year Biology major who joined the lab in the Winter of 2018. She is working on the environmental DNA (eDNA) projects in the lab and will be starting her Honors Thesis on eDNA differences across ocean depths in Fall 2018. After graduation, she hopes to attend graduate school for Marine Biology.


Vicky Yuan

Vicky Yuan is a 3rd year neuroscience major who is conducting research on the effects of anthropogenic stressors on the evolution of fish gut microbiomes. Her interest in coral reef ecosystems began after diving on the reefs of the Coral Triangle.