Student members
Naomi Cooper
Ella Stephens
Luke Rees
Claudia Holt
Angus Leahy
Advisors
Joachim Larsen
Evan Gibbs
Nicola Elliott
Louis Nightingale
Daniel Nebauer
Mentors
Prof. Brett Neilan
Dr. Karl Hassan
Naomi grew up in Goondiwindi, before moving to Port Macquarie at age 6 where she finished her secondary education in 2017. Gap years followed and she eventually moved to Newcastle in 2019 to get somewhere a little bigger than her hometown. Which is where she started her biotechnology degree at UON in the last half of 2020 amidst covid.
"I joined because I’m very interested in all things science and this was a perfect opportunity to develop more skills and connections- so of course I’m going to take that opportunity! Also the people are lovely and it’s a good way to make some friends"
Ella is a 20 year old, 3rd year biotechnology student. Hailing from Forster NSW where she went to high school across the bridge and spent her spare time at the beach or the lake.
“I joined the team so I could get some more lab experience and work with some people who I had already met who I knew would make the experience worthwhile”
Luke is a 24 year old, 3rd year bachelor of science student majoring in biological sciences. Born and raised on the central coast, he’s been living in Terrigal for the past 10 years and commuting a veritable hour to get to uni each time!
“I have always had a fascination with all things science. Since discovering my love for molecular biology in my first year of university, I have always wanted to be part of a team in this field of research. Joining the DeNovocastrians has allowed me to gain invaluable experience and make great connections and friendships along the way”
Claudia is a biotechnology student at the University of Newcastle. She originally started her degree in the hopes of perusing plant science however, she fell down the rabbit hole known as Microbiology!
"My long-term goals are to complete a PhD and work in research. I find enzyme and microbial technology absolutely mind blowing and would love to pursue a career in using these technologies to solve world problems. This is also the number one reason I joined the Novocastrians!"
Ava is 20 years old and completing a Bachelor of Biotechnology at the University of Newcastle! She has lived in Newcastle her whole life and went straight into university as soon as she could, even if it meant the hell of online classes!.
"I was looking for a way to not just get a practical understanding about what I was learning in class but to explore the humongous range of biology that I couldn’t wait to get my hands on. In a way it gave me an amazing opportunity to immerse myself into what I would like to pursue in my future career... Microbes!"
Angus is another one of our excellent biotechnology students. He joined the team to get experience in the lab and has has shown keen enthusiasm for wet work!
"I have loved working with the DeNovocastrians! I can't wait to take what I have learned this year and build upon it in whatever path I end up going down after I graduate! After all, it's not about the destination, but rather the friends we make along the way"
Jo is well accomplished at 30 years old- holding both a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Biology/Biotechnology from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. He’s also currently doing a PhD in Biological Sciences at the University of Newcastle.
“I joined DeNovocastrians as an advisor because I have a passion for synthetic biology and the opportunities it gives us as a society. I find it fascinating to engineer living organisms like bacteria and plants, and make them capable of producing everything we need, like medicine, biofuel, biodegradable plastics etc. Only the human mind can limit the possibilities synthetic biology gives us"
Currently undertaking a PHD in molecular microbiology at the University of Newcastle, Evan is broadly working in small molecule overproduction of bacterial cell lines- derived from fossil fuel sources; using high throughput methods of sequencing and novel screening techniques- aiming to derive rational designs of metabolomics. As a mature aged student Evan has completed a Bachelor of science with 1st class honours, majoring in biology. Before his academic career, Evan grew up in and around Newcastle and has run hotels in both regional NSW and Sydney.
Niki is 27 and currently a PhD student. She grew up in Sydney, but spent a lot of time in Newcastle growing up as her Dad’s family is from Newcastle. Niki did her Masters of Pharmacy and a Bachelor of Science at the University of Newcastle, and has returned to do her PhD in Biological sciences here as her heart has always belonged to Newcastle. She is focusing on the genetic cloning of neurotoxins into model organisms to create a more efficient production pathway for these compounds.
"I joined the team as I’m always interested in new projects, encouraging others to become more interested in experiments and research, and just generally doing cool science stuff. I love to learn new things and I love to help others learn as well. Nothing is better than finding other people who are excited about the same stuff you are!"
Louis is a 25 year old “general synthetic biology enjoyer”. He’s currently undertaking a PhD studying ultraviolet blocking compounds produced by cyanobacteria.
"I joined the team because I saw that there are some really exciting and important components of biology that don’t get as much attention as the standard stuff for undergrads; I hope more people can learn about and understand the cool world-changing stuff that's being done with biology today"
Daniel is a 28 year old, currently in his third year of his PhD from a Bachelor of Biotech with 1st class honours. Daniel grew up in Port Macquarie where he also completed his early education at Port public primary and high school.
“I joined the team to pass on some skills I’ve acquired throughout my candidature. I am a Supervisor. My role is to make sure the competing students stay on track with their projects and help answer any questions or help solve any experimental problems they may encounter”
Professor Brett Neilan is a molecular biologist and microbial chemist. One of his specialised fields is cyanobacterial genetics. When asked why he chose this particular field, he replied;
“I got into the field of cyanobacteria because they cause harmful algal blooms and that’s what effects water quality. 25 years ago I was offered a PhD scholarship to study cyanobacterial genetics for Sydney water, and the evolution of cyanobacteria in that process, and why they’re toxic"
Dr Karl Hassan, otherwise known as ‘the other Dr Karl’, studies the field of molecular microbiology. These microbes impact our lives in countless ways and have huge potential to help us build a sustainable future, but we are still just scratching the surface of what we have to learn about them. Over the past 15 years, there have been major developments in genomics, recombinant DNA technology and DNA synthesis that have pushed forward the field of Synthetic Biology. The combination of Synthetic Biology and the vast genetic diversity in microbes provides massive scope to do novel and interesting things. It is an exciting time to be in the field.