Skip to main content

Thomas F. Schultz

Associate Professor of the Practice of Marine Molecular Conservation
Marine Science and Conservation
135 Duke Marine Lab Rd, box_xxxx, Beaufort, NC 28516

Overview


I am broadly interested in how organisms adapt the their environment at a molecular level.  My research is largely focused on  conservation genetics in wild populations of marine organisms and my lab employs a combination of molecular, genetic, and genomic tools.  My lab is currently working on conservation genetics and hybridization in river herring, populations of juvenile summer flounder using the Pamlico Sound as a nursery, environmental selection of blue crabs in Lake Mattamuskeet, identifying genes involved in barnacle adhesion, and use of environmental DNA to detect anadromous fish and species composition in the ichthyoplankton.

Current Duke Appointments & Affiliations


Associate Professor of the Practice of Marine Molecular Conservation · 2023 - Present Marine Science and Conservation, Nicholas School of the Environment
Associate Professor of the Practice of Biology · 2024 - Present Biology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences

Recent News Items


Published January 22, 2025
On the Road with the Climate Commitment
Published November 11, 2020
Yum! Farming Oysters With Duke Students
Published December 6, 2019
Nicholas Students Learn About Aquafarms Through Oystering

View All News Items

Recent Scholarly Works


Exposure to PFOA and GenX elicits cell typespecific impacts on p53 and TGF-β signaling pathways.

Journal article Mol Biol Rep · February 27, 2026 Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of synthetic chemicals extensively used as plastic additives. Their environmental persistence and potential for bioaccumulation have raised significant toxicological concerns. This study evaluates the ... Full text Link to item Cite

Comparison of oyster reef and oyster aquaculture communities using environmental DNA metabarcoding and Nanopore sequencing

Journal article Marine Ecology Progress Series · January 1, 2026 Oyster reefs are widely accepted as enhancing biodiversity through habitat provisioning, the loss of which has resulted in decreased habitat for many marine taxa, including fisheries-relevant species. The rapid growth of the bivalve aquaculture industry ha ... Full text Cite

Environmental and vital effects on lithium isotopes and trace element ratios in biogenic carbonates: Insights from an estuarine salinity gradient

Journal article Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta · January 1, 2026 Isotope and element ratios in the carbonate skeletons of calcifying marine organisms can be used to reconstruct past environments and understand physiological processes occurring before calcification. The Li isotope composition (δ7Li) of biogeni ... Full text Cite
View All Scholarly Works

Recent Grants


REU Site: Undergraduate Research in Estuarine and Coastal Marine Systems

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Science Foundation · 2021 - 2025

Metabarcoding the Global Fouling Community

ResearchCo-Principal Investigator · Awarded by Office of Naval Research · 2021 - 2023

View All Grants

Education


University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill · 1996 Ph.D.