Andre P. Seale  , PhD
Associate Researcher and ProfessorDepartment of Human Nutrition, Food & Animal Sciences, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources – University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Work Email: seale@hawaii.edu
Research Interests
The effects of environmental changes on the physiology (I.e. growth, osmoregulation, metabolism and stress) of aquatic organisms with broader implications to aquaculture and biomedical research.
Recent Publications
- Woo, D. W., Malintha, G. H. T., Celino-Brady, F. T., Yamaguchi, Y., Breves, J. P., Seale, A. P. (2022). Tilapia prolactin cells are thermosensitive osmoreceptors. Am. J. Physiol. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.00027.2022.
- Seale, L. A., Gilman, C. L., Zavacki, A. M., Larsen, P. R., Inokuchi, M., Breves, J. P., Seale, A. P. (2021) Regulation of thyroid hormones and branchial iodothyronine deiodinases during freshwater acclimation in tilapia. Mol. Cell. Endocrinol. 538: 111450.
- Inokuchi, M., Moorman, B., Yamaguchi, Y., Seale, A. P. (2021). Age-dependent decline in salinity tolerance in a euryhaline fish. Front. Aging. 2: 15.
- Celino-Brady, F., Lerner, D. T., Seale, A. P. (2021). Experimental Approaches for Characterizing the Endocrine Disrupting Effects of Environmental Chemicals in Fish. Front. Endocrinol. 11:1170
- Seale, A. P., Pavlosky, K. K., Celino-Brady, F., Lerner, D. T. (2020). Sex, salinity and sampling period dependent patterns of growth hormone mRNA expression in Mozambique tilapia. Aquaculture. 519: 734766.
- Seale, A. P., Pavlosky, K. K., Celino-Brady, F., Yamaguchi, Y., Breves, J. P., Lerner, D. T. (2019). Systemic versus tissue-level modulation of prolactin signaling in a euryhaline teleost subjected to tidally changing salinities. J. Comp. Physiol.189, 581-594.
Recent Grants
- 2022-present PI: University of Hawai‘i Sea Grant College Program omnibus grant; “Identifying the physiological responses to extreme environmental changes in native Hawaiian Sea cucumbers found in traditional fishponds”;
- 2019-present Co-PI: Advanced Aquaculture Collaborative Programs (NOAA); “Establishing a Hawaiʻi-Pacific Aquaculture Consortium: A Revitalization and Expansion of the Aquaculture Development Program”.
- 2018-present Co-PI; Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); “Establishing an aquaculture program at the University of Hawai‘i that leverages and integrates Land Grant and Sea Grant research, extension and education resources.
- 2018-present PI; National Science Foundation (IOS-1755016); “Collaborative Research: Identifying osmosensitive molecular targets using a unique vertebrate model”.
- 2017-2021 PI; National Institutes of Health (1R21DK111775-01); “Integrating Osmosensitivity and Autocrine Signaling in a Model for Osmoregulation”.
Current Graduate Students
- Tharindu Malintha (PhD, Nutritional Sciences), Environmental regulation of transcription factors in fish.
- Ryan Chang (MS, Animal Science), Effects of salinity on the stress response in fish.
- Tyler Goodearly (PhD, Nutritional Sciences), Environmental physiology of Sea Cucumbers.
- Reilly Merlo (MS, Animal Science), Effects of salinity on fish nutrition.
Mark S. Thorne  , Ph.D.
Specialist, Range and Livestock ExtensionDepartment of Human Nutrition, Food and Animal Sciences, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources – University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Work Phone: 808-887-6183 Work Email: thornem@hawaii.edu
Research Interests
Livestock nutrition and grazing behavior, livestock grazing management, and rangeland ecology
Recent Publications
- Adhikari, B., C.N. Lee, V.S. Khadka, Y. Deng, G. Fukumoto, M. Thorne, K, Caires, J. Odani, and B. Mishra. 2022. RNA-Sequencing based analysis of bovine endometrium during the maternal recognition of pregnancy. BMC Genonics. 23:494 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-022-08720-4
- Krushelnycky, P.D., F. Starr, K. Starr, M. Abran, M. Thorne, J. Leary, M. Fukada, D. Rubinoff. 2018. Performance of the biocontrol agent Secusio extensa (Lepidoptera: Erebidae) on its target host, Senecio madagascariensis (Madagascar fireweed), on an alternate host, Delairea odorata (Cape ivy), and on non-target plants, in Hawaii. Biological Control 121: 234-246. (25% contribution, research support, manuscript review and edit).
- Lee, C.N., G.K. Fukumoto, M.S. Thorne, M.H. Stevenson, Y.S. Kim, M. Nakahata, and R.M. Ogoshi. 2017. Nutrient Composition of Sugarcane Forages were influenced by season and the time of harvest. Dairy and Vet. Sci. J. 2(1): 555579.
Recent Grants
- Thorne, M.S. (PI). 2021 – 2026. Evaluating Production and Nutrient Cycling of Grazing Management Systems in Hawaiian Forests and Pastures. USDA-CSREES, McIntire-Stennis (Internal). Funded. $125,000. 10/2021- 09/2026.
- Price, M. K. Steensma, S. Shwiff, K. Caires, M. Thorne (co-PI), D. Risch. 2022 – 2025. Wildlife Impacts on Agroecosystems and Culture: Achieving integrated pest management of invasive ungulates in Hawaii. USDA-NIFA, WSARE. Funded. $350,000. 4/2022 – 3/2025.
- Thorne, M.S. (PI), and M. Wright. 2021 – 2024. Detection and Management Strategies for the Control of Prosapia bicincta (Twolined Spittlebug) in Hawaii. Hawaii Dept. of Land and Natural Resources-HISC. Funded. $352,488. 10/2021 – 03/2024.
Current Graduate Students
- Brittany Castle (PhD Nutrition). Influence of Gastrointestinal Parasite Burden on Bioactive Forage Selection by Goats.
Jinzeng Yang  , PhD
ProfessorDepartment of Human Nutrition, Food and Animal Sciences, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources – University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Work Email: jinzeng@hawaii.edu
Research Interests
1) Myostatin gene, skeletal muscle, physical activities, diet, obesity and diabetes prevention, 2) DNA-based genetics program in livestock animal and aquatic species
Recent Publications
- Fu B, Yang J, Yang Y, Xia J, He Y, Wang Q, Zhao H, Yang H. 2022. Enhanced Muscle Fibers of Epinephelus coioides by Myostatin Autologous Nucleic Acid Vaccine. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 23(13):6997. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23136997
- Gu H, Zhou Y, Yang J, Li J, Peng Y, Zhang X, Miao Y, Jiang W, Bu G, Hou L, Li T, Zhang L, Xia X, Ma Z, Xiong Y, Zuo B. 2021.Targeted overexpression of PPARγ in skeletal muscle by random insertion and CRISPR/Cas9 transgenic pig cloning enhances oxidative fiber formation and intramuscular fat deposition. FASEB J. 35(2):e21308. doi: 10.1096/fj.202001812RR
- Li B, Cui W, Yang J. 2020. Enhanced skeletal muscle growth in myostatin-deficient transgenic pigs had improved glucose uptake in stretozotocin -induced diabetes. Trans-genic Research. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11248-020-00194-y
- Yang J, 2014. Enhanced skeletal muscle for effective glucose homeostasis. Progress in Molecular Biology and Translational Science 121:133-63
Recent Grants
- Target Disruption of fish PGC for enhanced growth, USDA-CTSA, 2021-Present
- Nutrient Bioavailability-Phytonutrients and Beyond, USDA-Hatch, 2019-present
- Post-harvest food technology and nutrition/ Bioactive Compound. USDA, 2019-present
Current Graduate Students
- Brock Wetzlich, MS in MBBE