JK Da-Anoy Receives 2026 Belamarich Dissertation Writing Award

JK Da-Anoy of the Davies Lab recently received the 2026 Belamarich Dissertation Writing Award. This award complements the Belamarich Award, and is given to support an outstanding PhD student through the dissertation writing stage.

JK studies the role of innate immunity in cnidarian stress biology, with a focus on how symbiosis and sex shape immune function across environmental contexts. His dissertation investigates the conserved immune transcription factor NF-κB and related immune pathways in Nematostella vectensis, Aiptasia, and both facultatively and obligately symbiotic corals. Specifically, he examines how algal symbiosis restructures host immunity and whether hosting different algal symbionts alters immune responses under stress and pathogen exposure. He also investigates how biological sex influences innate immunity across cnidarians, using pharmacological approaches to test whether immune dimorphism is mechanistically linked to sex-specific signaling pathways. JK employs an integrative approach combining molecular and cell biology, physiology, behavior, and functional genomics to uncover the mechanisms underlying cnidarian immunity, symbiosis, and stress resilience.

Congratulations, JK!