Horizons Fall 2014

are forward looking. It will provide a solid foundation to both genomics and computer science fields, and introduce bioinformatics theory, re- sources, and databases, which are going to be so essential,” he said. The dedication Lopez has to his students and science does not go unnoticed by his colleagues. “Jose Lopez is an outstanding faculty member of the Oceano- graphic Center. He graciously gives of his time and talents to organize the visiting faculty members and researcher seminar series, as well as our OC Quality Improvement Pro- gram. He does this and, at the same time, conducts dedicated research with the goals of both better under- standing and conservation of marine resources,” said Rich- ard E. Dodge, Ph.D., dean of the Oceanographic Center. Much of Lopez’s interest in microbiology and metage- nomics in the past 17 years has been focused on marine organisms, specifically, deep-sea sponges, the simplest and most primitive form of multicellular animals. Two of his most important studies on sponges will con- tinue to have far-reaching and, most likely, positive out- comes on understanding changes in the environment due to pathogens. As one of the recipients of a block grant that was awarded to the Florida Institute of Oceanography from the petroleum industry company BP Global, Lopez collected sponges near the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. The oil spill was the worst in history. “These filter feeding sponges behave as good barometers to detect the oil’s impact on marine environments,” said Lopez at the time. Four years later, Lopez said the findings will be published “as we are just getting together our papers that contain the work we did concerning the oil spill.” He continues work on a project begun two years ago with students in his lab on the genetic and microscopic analyses of barrel reef sponges ( Xestospongia muta ) that have been hit with sponge orange band disease. The disease has devas- tated the barrel sponge, sometimes called the redwoods of the reef because they live for long periods of time, many for more than 100 years. Lopez and his researchers are comparing the diseased samples with healthy samples to try to find out what caused the outbreak, which occurred in 2012. In July 2014, a new outbreak of sponge orange band disease suddenly appeared in the Florida Keys. Lopez humbly proclaims that he’s not one for personal accolades. “What pulled me into this field was a fascination with how life works. And if I can help education and aware- ness increase because of what I do, or see a reef protected, or people become more aware and greener, that is satisfying.” He’s also not too worried about job security for himself or for his students. “The ocean is always going to offer up ques- tions. It’s so vast; there’s plenty out there to study.” n 25 HORIZONS Professor Jose Lopez’s research takes him from diving explora- tions (opposite page and below) to the classroom at NSU’s Ocean- ographic Center. At left, Lopez demonstrates to students Lauren O’Connell and Cassandra Ruck, visiting Brazilian researcher Rodrigo Rodrigues Domingues, and student Josh Stocker.