Dr Rebekah Boreham
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Email
r.boreham@essex.ac.uk -
Location
Colchester Campus
Profile
Biography
My background is in ecotoxicology, with particular focus on how pharmaceuticals affect fish in UK waterways. My PhD project at the University of Exeter used transgenic zebrafish and high throughput imaging to investigate pharmaceutical-induced oxidative stress, and how this is influenced by other environmental stressors such as temperature. I then had a brief role in biomedical research using transgenic zebrafish again, this time investigating neural signalling of the pancreas. I am now the University of Essex as a postdoctoral researcher, developing analytical chemistry techniques to detect environmental contaminants in archival tissues of fish such as eye lenses, otoliths and scales. The hope is that, by quantifying these compounds in sequential tissue layers, we can reconstruct the age of contaminant exposure and link this to stress responses such as skipped spawning events. Ultimately, these tools will help us understand the chemical burden on fish habitats so we can better protect or restore their critical habitats and support fisheries during this period of global change.
Qualifications
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PhD University of Exeter, (2022)
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BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences (Animal Biology) with Study Abroad University of Exeter, (2017)
Appointments
Other academic
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Graduate Research Assistant, Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter (3/4/2022 - 20/12/2023)
Research and professional activities
Current research
From Ions to Ecosystems: A Novel Framework for the Biomonitoring and Management of Vulnerable and Commercial Fishes
The overarching project aims are to develop novel methods to reconstruct fish health, growth, diet, pollution exposure and movement patterns, with a particular focus on chemical tracers in fish tissues and archival structures such as otoliths (earstones), eye lenses and scales. These structures grow incrementally from birth to death, producing growth bands (biochronologies, like tree rings) that can be used to reconstruct age and growth rate. By analyzing the chemical composition of these tissues it is also possible to reconstruct physiological and environmental histories. Ultimately, these tools will help us understand fish habitat needs so we can protect or restore their critical habitats and support fisheries during this period of global change.
Contact
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