Armando Cruz Laufer
PhD student
BSc Biological Sciences, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt a.M. (Germany)
MSc Conservation and Biodiversity, University of Exeter (UK)
Joined the group in January 2019
Research project: The evolution of diversity and host specificity of African monogenean fish parasites
Host specificity is a key trait of parasite ecology. In our study, we want to investigate evolutionary mechanisms that could determine the host specificity of a species with monogenean flatworms (Platyhelminthes) from the genus Cichlidogyrus as our model organisms. We are aiming at identifying morphological and molecular markers through close examination of lesser known Cichlidogyrus clades and statistical modelling to identify key characteristics of host specificity.
My favorite quote: “Man cannot produce a single work without the assistance of the slow, assiduous, corrosive worm of thought.” -Eugenio Montale