Jennifer Polinski
Staff ScientistOriginally from Michigan, Jennifer earned a BA in Biology and Mathematics from Albion College before completing her MS in Biology at Florida Atlantic University. Working at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, her master’s thesis characterized coral symbionts (zooxanthellae) at shallow and mesophotic depths in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Prior to joining GMGI, she expanded her genomics and bioinformatics expertise at the Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
Jennifer Polinski is currently a Staff Scientist and one of the longest-standing members of the research team, having joined GMGI in 2017. Since joining GMGI, Jennifer’s research has spanned all GMGI’s research programs. She has generated reference genomes for the American lobster and Jonah crab, uncovered genomic and transcriptomic signatures of exceptional longevity in sea urchins, and led eDNA biodiversity studies both locally and internationally. In 2025, Jennifer began pursuing a PhD in Marine & Environmental Sciences at Northeastern University, focusing on conservation genomics of Caribbean corals in collaboration with NU and the Vollmer Lab at FAU.
Jennifer is also an avid SCUBA diver and underwater photographer, diving locally year-round. Out of the water, she enjoys hiking, skiing, and ballroom dancing.
Education
2014 – BA Biology & Mathematics, Albion College, Albion, Michigan
2016 – MSc Biology, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Florida Atlantic University, Advisor: Joshua Voss
Research Interests
My research utilizes advanced molecular techniques to understand marine biodiversity, adaptation, and resilience across biological scales – from genes to organisms to ecosystems. I apply tools such as whole-genome sequencing (WGS), transcriptomics, and metabarcoding to characterize marine communities, identify adaptive genetic variation, and inform conservation and management. My work has spanned GMGI’s research programs, including genome assemblies for commercially important fisheries species and comparative genomics of exceptional longevity in sea urchins.
The central theme of my current work is Conservation Genomics, with two focus areas: 1) ecosystem-wide biodiversity assessments and 2) genomics to improve conservation and restoration efforts. My goal is to generate data that can directly inform conservation and management. I utilize eDNA metabarcoding, metagenomics, and metatranscriptomics to characterize marine communities across habitats – from sediments to surface waters, and microbes to marine mammals. Additionally, in collaboration with Northeastern University and the Vollmer Lab at FAU, my PhD research focuses on identifying resilient coral genotypes within active Caribbean restoration efforts to support science-based coral restoration in a changing climate.
Click here to view more of Jennifer’s work at GMGI.
Research Profile Links
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=tgjuZ-wAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jennifer_Polinski2
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-polinski-782351135/
Lab Link
https://gmgi.org/jennifer-polinski-ms/Polinski, J.M., Strand, E.L., O’Donnell, T.P., Silva, T.L., Wiley, D.N. and Harke, M.J. (2025), Environmental DNA Documents Ecosystem-Wide Biodiversity Within the Marine Protected Area Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Environmental DNA, 7:e70138. https://doi.org/10.1002/edn3.70138
Major, S.R., Polinski, J.M., Penn, K., Rodrigue, M., Harke, M.J. (2025) Novel and diverse features identified in the genomes of bacteria isolated from a hydrothermal vent plume. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. E02593-24. https://doi.org/10.1128/aem.02593-24.
Polinski, J.M., O’Donnell, T.P., Bodnar, A.G. (2024) Chromosome-level reference genome for the Jonah crab, Cancer borealis. G3 Genes|Genomes|Genetics https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkae254
Polinski, J.M, Castellano, K.R., Buckley, K.M, and Bodnar, A.G. (2024) Genomic signatures of exceptional longevity and negligible aging in the long-lived red sea urchin. Cell Reports 43(4) 114021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114021
Polinski, J.M., Rodrigue, M., Meyer, J.D., Harke, M.J. (2023) Drifting in the deep: Metatranscriptomics and metabarcoding reveal sustained metabolic activity and community composition in hydrothermal vent plume microbial communities. Frontiers in Marine Science. 10:1219784. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2023.1219784
Atkinson, Rogan A., Baker C. S., Dagdag R., Redlinger M., Polinski J. M., Urban J., Sremba A., Branson M., Mashburn K., Pallin L., Klink A., Steel D., Bortz E., Kerr I. 2021. Genetic, Endocrine, and Microbiological Assessments of Blue, Humpback and Killer Whale Health using Unoccupied Aerial Systems. Wildlife Society Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.1240
Polinski, J.M., Zimin, A.V., Clark, K.F., Kohn, A.B., Sadowski, N., Timp, W., Ptitsyn, A., Khanna, P., Romanova, D.Y., Williams, P., Greenwood, S.J., Moroz, L.L., Walt, D.R. and Bodnar, A.G. (2021) The American lobster genome reveals insights on longevity, neural, and immune adaptations. Science Advances Vol. 7, no. 26, eabe8290 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abe8290 https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/7/26/eabe8290
Polinski, J.M., N. Kron, D.R. Smith, and A.G. Bodnar. (2020) Unique age-related transcriptional signature in the nervous system of the long-lived red sea urchin Mesocentrotus franciscanus. Scientific Reports. 10: 9182. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-66052-3 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-66052-3
Polinski, J.M., J.P. Bucci, M. Gasser, and A.G. Bodnar. (2019) Metabarcoding assessment of prokaryotic and eukaryotic taxa in sediments from Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Scientific Reports. 9:14820 doi:10.1038/s41598-019-51341-3. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-51341-3
Polinski, J.M. and J.D. Voss. 2018. Evidence of photoacclimatization at mesophotic depths in the coral-Symbiodinium symbiosis at Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary and McGrail Bank. Coral Reefs, 37(3): 779-789. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-018-1701-2.
Klepac, C.N., J. Beal, C.D. Kenkel, A. Sproles, J.M. Polinski, M.A. Williams, M.V. Matz, and J.D. Voss. 2015. Seasonal stability of coral-Symbiodinium associations in the subtropical coral habitat of St. Lucie Reef, Florida. Marine Ecology Progress Series. 532: 137-151. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps11369.