Hannah Greenhough

Scientist – Aquatic health and microalgal biotechnology

Role at Cawthron

Hannah has worked at Cawthron since 2015 and is part of the Biosecurity Group, working primarily on the Changing Microalgal Communities (CMC) and Shellfish Aquaculture Research (ShARP) programmes. She is currently in the final stages of her PhD, investigating the effects of harmful algal bloom forming microalgae and climate change stress on the early life stages of green-lipped mussels. This project has been multidisciplinary using a range of techniques including transcriptomics, flow cytometry, histopathology, in vitro bioassays and whole animal physiological measurements.

Hannah also works on the growth optimisation of a wide range of microalgae, focussing on producers of novel bioactive compounds. This work encompasses the downstream processes of harvesting, isolating and purifying the compounds of interest and making synthetic chemical modifications to improve their commercial or scientific applications. Hannah is experienced in the use of sophisticated equipment including photobioreactors, and liquid chromatography mass spectrometers. 

Technical skills, experience and interests:

• Development and optimisation of culture techniques for microalgae
• Use of advanced algal cultivation systems
• Invertebrate physiology and biology
• Effects of climate change on aquatic life
• Molecular analyses including transcriptomics
• Data analysis software and coding languages
• Development and implementation of quality systems
• Analytical chemistry techniques such as LC-MS/MS
• Micro-scale chemical reactions 

Qualifications

BSc Microbiology (Hons) (1st Class), University of Otago, New Zealand, 2013
PhD candidate, University of Otago 2022 – 2025