curriculum vitae
Basics
| Name | Ana M. Palacio Castro |
| Label | Assistant Scientist |
| apalacio@earth.miami.edu | |
| Phone | (305) 361-4400 |
| Url | https://anampc.github.io |
| Summary | Biologist studying how ocean warming, acidification, diseases, and pollution affect corals. I identify environmental and genetic factors that promote more resistant corals that could survive in our fast changing world. |
Education
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2013 - 2018 Miami, USA
Ph.D.
University of Miami
Marine Biology and Ecology
Dissertation: Abiotic controls on endosymbiotic algal communities and their implications for coral bleaching susceptibility and recovery.
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2003 - 2010 Medellin, Col
B.S.
Universidad de Antioquia
Biology
Thesis: Comparison of methods for monitoring sessile benthic communities in “La Azufrada”, coral reef, Gorgona Island National Natural Park.
Work
- 2023.06 - Present
Assistant Scientist
UM-CIMAS, NOAA-AOML
- Oversee laboratory and field-based research projects across coral reef health and resilience
- Authored six publications in peer-reviewed journals and presented at two scientific conferences
- Secured over $4 million in research funding and served as both Principal Investigator (PI) and Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) on multiple competitive grants
- Supervised undergraduate and Master's students
- Received the CIMAS Outstanding Science Award
- 2022.01 - 2023.05
Postdoctoral researcher
UM-CIMAS, NOAA-AOML
- Synthesized over a decade of carbonate chemistry data for the Florida Keys to assess long-term environmental trends
- Led laboratory experiments investigating the impacts of temperature and nutrient enrichment on stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD)
- Co-led the integration of robotic technologies to enhance experimental capabilities in the wet lab
- Published five peer-reviewed articles (three as first author) and presented research at three international conferences
- Secured research funding and served as Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) on multiple competitive grants
- 2019.10 - 2021.12
Postdoctoral Fellow
National Research Council
- Designed and led laboratory experiments investigating the role of nutrient enrichment on white band disease progression in corals
- Published three peer-reviewed journal articles (two as first author) and presented findings at the 14th International Coral Reef Symposium (ICRS)
- Provided mentorship to a Master’s student, guiding experimental design, analysis, and scientific writing
Awards
- 2023
Co-PI: Characterizing and forecasting coastal ecosystem responses to multiple stressors for management applications in South Florida
National Ocean Service (NOS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
($4,080,792)
- 2023
PI: High-replication assessment of the effects of poor water quality on South Florida coral health and susceptibility to Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
($380,553)
- 2022
PI: Assessing the effects of environmental co-factors on SCTLD transmission and progression rates
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
($145,350)
- 2019
Publications
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2025 Statistical prediction of in situ coral reef carbonate dynamics using endmember chemistry, hydrodynamic models, and benthic composition
Aquatic Geochemistry
Hirsh, H.K.Oliver, T.A.Dobbelaere, T.Palacio-Castro, A.M.Barkley, H.C.Webb, A.E.Hanert, E.Enochs, I.C.
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2025 Genotypes of Acropora cervicornis in Florida show resistance to either elevated nutrients or disease, but not both in combination
PLOS One
Palacio-Castro, A.M.Kroesche, D.Enochs, I.C.Kelble, C.Smith, I.Baker, A.Rosales, S.M.
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2025 Elevated temperature decreases stony coral tissue loss disease transmission, with little effect of nutrients
Scientific Reports
Palacio-Castro, A.M.Soderberg, N.Zagon, Z.et al.
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2024 Sequential Treatment Application Robot (STAR) for high-replication marine experimentation
HardwareX
Enochs IC, Soderberg N, Palacio-Castro AM, and Eaton K
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2024 Rubble persistence under ocean acidification threatened by accelerated bioerosion and lower-density coral skeletons
Global Change Biology
Webb AE, Palacio-Castro AM, Cooke K, Eaton KR, et al.
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2024 Sediment source and dose influence the larval performance of the threatened coral Orbicella faveolata
PLOS ONE
Serrano XM, Rosales SM, Miller MW, Palacio-Castro AM, Williamson OM, et al.
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2023 Coral disease outbreak at the remote Flower Garden Banks, Gulf of Mexico
Frontiers in Marine Science
Johnston MA, Studivan MS, Enochs IC, Correa AMS, Besemer N, Eckert RJ, Edwards K, Hannum R, Hu X, Nuttall M, O’Connell K, Palacio-Castro AM, et al.
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2023 Increased dominance of heat-tolerant symbionts create resilient coral reefs in near-term ocean warming
PNAS
Palacio-Castro AM, Smith TB, Snyder GA, Brandtneris V, van Hooidonk R, Maté JL, Manzello D, Glynn PW, Fong P, Baker AC
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2023 Antibiotics reduce Pocillopora coral-associated bacteria diversity, decrease holobiont oxygen consumption, and activate immune gene expression
Molecular Ecology
Connelly MT, Snyder GA, Palacio-Castro AM, PR Gillette, AC Baker, N Traylor-Knowles
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2023 Coral reef carbonate chemistry reveals interannual, seasonal, and spatial impacts on Ocean Acidification off Florida
Global Biogeochemical Cycles
Palacio-Castro AM, Enochs IC, Besemer N, Boyd A, et al.
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2022 Microbiome signatures in Acropora cervicornis are associated with genotypic resistance to elevated nutrients and heat stress
Coral Reefs
Palacio-Castro AM, Rosales SM, Dennison CE, Baker AC
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2021 Variation in susceptibility among three Caribbean coral species and their algal symbionts indicates the threatened staghorn coral, Acropora cervicornis, is particularly susceptible to elevated nutrients and heat stress
Coral Reefs
Palacio-Castro, AM, Dennison CE, Rosales SM, Baker AC
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2020 Coral reef resilience to thermal stress in the Eastern Tropical Pacific
Global Change Biology
M Romero-Torres, A Acosta, AM Palacio-Castro, EA Treml, et al.
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2020 Increased algal symbiont density reduces host immunity in a threatened Caribbean coral species, Orbicella faveolata
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution
Fuess LE, Palacio-Castro AM, Butler CC, Baker AC, Mydlarz LD
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2017 Source location and food availability determine the growth response of Orbicella faveolata to climate change stressors
Regional Studies in Marine Science
EK Towle, AM Palacio-Castro, AC Baker, C Langdon
Presentations
Skills
| Diving & boating (Agency, Year) | |
| * 100ft scientific diver (AAUS, 2013): 400+ dives | |
| * Enriched Air – Nitrox (TDI, 2022, 1293906) | |
| * AWARE coral reef conservation (PADI, 2015, 15110U4056) | |
| * First aid for divers (DAN, 2014-2025) | |
| * Small motor boats (MOCC - US Geological Survey, 2013) | |
| * Advanced open water diver (PADI, 2009) |
| Software and data | |
| * Unix/Linux | |
| * Statistics and data analysis (R, Python) | |
| * Spatial analysis (ArcGIS) | |
| * Image analysis (ImageJ, CPCe) | |
| * Figure preparation (GIMP, Inkscape) |
| languages | |
| * Spanish - Native Speaker | |
| * English - Proficient |
References
| Andrew C. Baker, Ph.D. | |
| Professor. University of Miami - Department of Marine Biology and Ecology |
| Ian Enochs, Ph.D. | |
| Research Ecologist. NOAA - AOML |