Interested in joining the Toxopeus lab? Please see our Opportunities page for more details, and our Research page information on current projects.
Dr. Jantina Toxopeus
Principal Investigator
Funding: NSERC Discovery Grant, StFX UCR (University Council for Research) Grant
I am an assistant professor at St. FX, where I love researching how insects survive winter and teaching biology. I take an integrative approach to research, explaining whole animal phenotypes (like being able to survive freezing) at many levels of biological organization (genes, cells, tissues, physiological systems).
Curriculum vitae | Google Scholar profile | Twitter
Sarah Rokosh
MSc Student
Project: Using RNAi to test the function of genes in insect freeze tolerance
Joined the lab: Sep 2021
Funding: Nova Scotia Graduate Scholarship (2021-2022), CIHR Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS-M; 2022-2023)
Luke Burton
MSc Student
Project: Cold and hypoxia tolerance of winter-active pond insects, co-supervised with Dr. Tammy Rodela
Joined the lab: Sep 2022
Funding: Nova Scotia Graduate Scholarship (2022-2023)
Brooklyn Vestby
Honours Student (Fall 2023/Winter 2024); Undergraduate Research Assistant (Summer 2023);
Project: The role of supervillin in cricket freeze tolerance
Joined the lab: May 2023
Funding: StFX Biology Chiasson Award (2023)
Amber Gough
Undergraduate Research Assistant (Summer 2023)
Project: Overwintering biology of ticks
Joined the lab: May 2023
Katelyn Lemay
Directed Study Student (Winter 2023), Post-Undergraduate Research Assistant (Summer 2023)
Project: Genetic identification of Rhagoletis (apple maggots)
Joined the lab: Jan 2023
Funding: Nova Scotia EDGE (2023)
Victoria Adams
Honours Student (Fall 2022/Winter 2023); Undergraduate Research Assistant (Summer 2021, 2022, 2023); Volunteer (Fall 2021/Winter 2022)
Project: Heat shock protein gene expression during acclimation of freeze-tolerant crickets
Joined the lab: May 2021
Funding: StFX Biology McLachlan Award (2021)
Maranda van Oirschot
Undergraduate Research Assistant (Summer 2021 – present)
Projects: Effect of cold and freezing on the cytoskeleton of freeze-tolerant crickets, overwintering biology of ticks
Joined the lab: May 2021
Funding: StFX Biology McLachlan Award (2021), NSERC Undergraduate Summer Research Award (2023)
Lab alumni can be viewed here!
Older photos:
The Toxopeus Lab 