John R. Finnerty
· Associate Professor of Biology; Associate Chair, Ecology, Behavior & EvolutionBoston University · Biology
Active 1992–2025
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About
John R. Finnerty is an Associate Professor of Biology and Associate Chair of the Ecology, Behavior & Evolution Lab at Boston University. His research focuses on fundamental questions in biodiversity through an interdisciplinary approach that combines genomics, molecular biology, developmental biology, organismal biology, and field ecology. His primary study organisms are coastal marine invertebrates, including sea anemones, corals, and jellyfishes. Finnerty played a leading role in developing the starlet sea anemone, Nematostella vectensis, into a model system for genomics and developmental biology, providing insights into the early evolution of animal genomes and body plans by comparing it to higher animals. His work also explores the ecology and evolution of parasitism by comparing free-living and parasitic anemones, as well as studying stress tolerance evolution through genomic and developmental assays under environmental stressors. Recently, Finnerty's lab has increasingly focused on coral resilience in the face of global change, conducting research in Turneffe Atoll Marine Reserve, Belize. His research has revealed the importance of mangroves as habitats for reef corals and investigates how generalist corals occupy diverse habitats such as reefs and mangroves. His work aims to understand the role of these generalist species in future reef, mangrove, and seagrass bed ecosystems.
Research topics
- Ecology
- Biology
- Fishery
- Demography
- Geography
Selected publications
Scientific Reports · 2017-11-16 · 97 citations
articleOpen accessTranscription factor NF-κB plays a central role in immunity from fruit flies to humans, and NF-κB activity is altered in many human diseases. To investigate a role for NF-κB in immunity and disease on a broader evolutionary scale we have characterized NF-κB in a sea anemone (Exaiptasia pallida; called Aiptasia herein) model for cnidarian symbiosis and dysbiosis (i.e., "bleaching"). We show that the DNA-binding site specificity of Aiptasia NF-κB is similar to NF-κB proteins from a broad expanse o…
Ecology and Evolution · 2018-10-18 · 49 citations
articleOpen accessAbstract For animals that harbor photosynthetic symbionts within their tissues, such as corals, the different relative contributions of autotrophy versus heterotrophy to organismal energetic requirements have direct impacts on fitness. This is especially true for facultatively symbiotic corals, where the balance between host‐caught and symbiont‐produced energy can be altered substantially to meet the variable demands of a shifting environment. In this study, we utilized a temperate coral–algal s…
PLoS ONE · 2018-01-26 · 21 citations
articleOpen accessSenior authorCorrespondingNematostella vectensis is a member of the phylum Cnidaria, a lineage that includes anemones, corals, hydras, and jellyfishes. This estuarine anemone is an excellent model system for investigating the evolution of stress tolerance because it is easy to collect in its natural habitat and to culture in the laboratory, and it has a sequenced genome. Additionally, there is evidence of local adaptation to environmental stress in different N. vectensis populations, and abundant protein-coding polymorph…
Frontiers in Marine Science · 2020 · 16 citations
Senior authorCorrespondingHalf of coral species that occur on Caribbean reefs have also been reported living in mangroves. Given the vulnerability of corals living on reefs to environmental change, populations of the same species living in mangroves may prove critical to long-term survival of these coral species and the resilience of nearby reefs. To date, few studies have addressed the health and viability of mangrove coral populations, which is necessary if we are to understand their role in the broader meta-community.…
EvoDevo · 2015-04-24 · 14 citations
articleOpen accessBACKGROUND: The molecular mechanisms underlying sex determination and differentiation in animals are incredibly diverse. The Dmrt (doublesex and mab-3 related transcription factor) gene family is an evolutionary ancient group of transcription factors dating to the ancestor of metazoans that are, in part, involved in sex determination and differentiation in numerous bilaterian animals and thus represents a potentially conserved mechanism for differentiating males and females dating to the protost…
Recent grants
Frequent coauthors
- 51 shared
Mark Q. Martindale
Whitney Museum of American Art
- 26 shared
Astrid Terry
Wellcome Centre for Molecular Parasitology
- 26 shared
Jarrod Chapman
Joint Genome Institute
- 26 shared
Harris Shapiro
- 26 shared
Igor V. Grigoriev
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- 26 shared
Uffe Hellsten
Joint Genome Institute
- 26 shared
Daniel S. Rokhsar
Innovative Genomics Institute
- 26 shared
Nicholas H. Putnam
National Nuclear Security Administration
Education
- 1994
PhD, Organismal Biology
University of Chicago
- 1989
Bachelor of Arts, Biology
University of Pennsylvania
Awards & honors
- Oboh-Weilke Postdoctoral Travel Award
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