Pedro Brandão-Dias F Pinto
@pedrobd.bsky.social
Biologist, molecular ecologist🧑🔬 , eDNA nerd 🧬, birder 🐦, coin collector 🪙, insect enjoyer 🐜, Brazilian mineiro, and more.
Currently a Postdoc in the Kelly Lab at UW.
Currently a Postdoc in the Kelly Lab at UW.
Hahah it does look comical! But I mean... we don't wanna risk it moving mid sequencing!. These are the conditions most of the time.
(It was relatively tame at the time I took this video)
(It was relatively tame at the time I took this video)
January 17, 2026 at 7:05 AM
Hahah it does look comical! But I mean... we don't wanna risk it moving mid sequencing!. These are the conditions most of the time.
(It was relatively tame at the time I took this video)
(It was relatively tame at the time I took this video)
We are on!
Air 🌬️
Sea spray 💦
Surface 🌊
3000 m deep ⚓
~1 million DNA molecules/hour
sequenced live in the middle of the Pacific Ocean!
Shout out to Aden and Rhonda,l who can extract DNA, PCR, and library prep without getting seasick ⛵️
From sample to data in less than 48 hrs.
#eDNA #nanopore #UW
Air 🌬️
Sea spray 💦
Surface 🌊
3000 m deep ⚓
~1 million DNA molecules/hour
sequenced live in the middle of the Pacific Ocean!
Shout out to Aden and Rhonda,l who can extract DNA, PCR, and library prep without getting seasick ⛵️
From sample to data in less than 48 hrs.
#eDNA #nanopore #UW
January 17, 2026 at 1:57 AM
January 15, 2026 at 7:49 PM
Sunrise CTD cast!! This one went right inside the Toto caldera, which is an underwater volcano 🌋!
We found the volcano did have a plume (meaning it is activelly erupting) - I got to see scientists cheering to a live feed of data when the plume appeared. NASA landing style 🚀👩🚀 #Cruise #Volcano
We found the volcano did have a plume (meaning it is activelly erupting) - I got to see scientists cheering to a live feed of data when the plume appeared. NASA landing style 🚀👩🚀 #Cruise #Volcano
January 13, 2026 at 10:27 PM
We call this trick "we forgot to pack a heatblock and now we have to improvise with a hotplate and sand".
It is walnut shell sand. Smells nice.
It is walnut shell sand. Smells nice.
January 10, 2026 at 3:21 AM
We call this trick "we forgot to pack a heatblock and now we have to improvise with a hotplate and sand".
It is walnut shell sand. Smells nice.
It is walnut shell sand. Smells nice.
Our first #CRESST CTD cast is out!
A CTD is a rosette sampler full of sensors and water bottles. We can monitor sensors live and trigger the closure of each bottle from aboard as it comes back up through the water column (deep to shalow).
We don't have much time, so this cast was only to 200m.
A CTD is a rosette sampler full of sensors and water bottles. We can monitor sensors live and trigger the closure of each bottle from aboard as it comes back up through the water column (deep to shalow).
We don't have much time, so this cast was only to 200m.
January 9, 2026 at 5:44 AM
Our first #CRESST CTD cast is out!
A CTD is a rosette sampler full of sensors and water bottles. We can monitor sensors live and trigger the closure of each bottle from aboard as it comes back up through the water column (deep to shalow).
We don't have much time, so this cast was only to 200m.
A CTD is a rosette sampler full of sensors and water bottles. We can monitor sensors live and trigger the closure of each bottle from aboard as it comes back up through the water column (deep to shalow).
We don't have much time, so this cast was only to 200m.
After a 7 day delay, we are finally on board of the RV Thomas G. Thompson! Getting ready for 14 days of #eDNA data collection and lab work going from #Philippines towards #Guam
It is a data deficient area, so I will also be making the first ever pelagic bird surveys of this region.🐦⬛🐦 #unqualified
It is a data deficient area, so I will also be making the first ever pelagic bird surveys of this region.🐦⬛🐦 #unqualified
January 5, 2026 at 5:14 AM
After a 7 day delay, we are finally on board of the RV Thomas G. Thompson! Getting ready for 14 days of #eDNA data collection and lab work going from #Philippines towards #Guam
It is a data deficient area, so I will also be making the first ever pelagic bird surveys of this region.🐦⬛🐦 #unqualified
It is a data deficient area, so I will also be making the first ever pelagic bird surveys of this region.🐦⬛🐦 #unqualified
January 5, 2026 at 1:40 AM
They claim there are 2M bats here. They are the pollinators of the Mango plantations in southern Mandanao!
January 3, 2026 at 9:28 AM
They claim there are 2M bats here. They are the pollinators of the Mango plantations in southern Mandanao!
I was recently humbled by the presence of the type specimen of the first bird ever.
The #Archeopteryx is truly a magical thing.
This object here defines what a bird🐓 is.
The #Archeopteryx is truly a magical thing.
This object here defines what a bird🐓 is.
December 19, 2025 at 8:16 PM
I was recently humbled by the presence of the type specimen of the first bird ever.
The #Archeopteryx is truly a magical thing.
This object here defines what a bird🐓 is.
The #Archeopteryx is truly a magical thing.
This object here defines what a bird🐓 is.
Marion, idk who you are, but you are very funny.
December 19, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Marion, idk who you are, but you are very funny.
Transport is not one-size-fits-all, because water moves differently across systems!
Lakes show short, depth-structured signals.
Rivers vary with discharge and particle size.
Coastal and open ocean waters can carry eDNA fa, yet still reflect local sources. 🌊📍
#eDNA #AquaticEcology #eDNATransport
Lakes show short, depth-structured signals.
Rivers vary with discharge and particle size.
Coastal and open ocean waters can carry eDNA fa, yet still reflect local sources. 🌊📍
#eDNA #AquaticEcology #eDNATransport
December 12, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Transport is not one-size-fits-all, because water moves differently across systems!
Lakes show short, depth-structured signals.
Rivers vary with discharge and particle size.
Coastal and open ocean waters can carry eDNA fa, yet still reflect local sources. 🌊📍
#eDNA #AquaticEcology #eDNATransport
Lakes show short, depth-structured signals.
Rivers vary with discharge and particle size.
Coastal and open ocean waters can carry eDNA fa, yet still reflect local sources. 🌊📍
#eDNA #AquaticEcology #eDNATransport
We reviewed hundreds of papers (over 200!) to identify which factors consistently matter across systems and which ones do not.
Some drivers are robust. Others barely show an effect.
The field needed a map, so we built one.
📊🧩
#EnvironmentalDNA #Synthesis
Some drivers are robust. Others barely show an effect.
The field needed a map, so we built one.
📊🧩
#EnvironmentalDNA #Synthesis
December 12, 2025 at 4:33 PM
We reviewed hundreds of papers (over 200!) to identify which factors consistently matter across systems and which ones do not.
Some drivers are robust. Others barely show an effect.
The field needed a map, so we built one.
📊🧩
#EnvironmentalDNA #Synthesis
Some drivers are robust. Others barely show an effect.
The field needed a map, so we built one.
📊🧩
#EnvironmentalDNA #Synthesis
Across all these studies, one thing became obvious:
eDNA is not a single thing.
It exists in many physical and biological forms, and those forms change how it moves, degrades, and gets detected.
That is what we organize with the "eDNA profile" concept.
#eDNAProfile
eDNA is not a single thing.
It exists in many physical and biological forms, and those forms change how it moves, degrades, and gets detected.
That is what we organize with the "eDNA profile" concept.
#eDNAProfile
December 12, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Across all these studies, one thing became obvious:
eDNA is not a single thing.
It exists in many physical and biological forms, and those forms change how it moves, degrades, and gets detected.
That is what we organize with the "eDNA profile" concept.
#eDNAProfile
eDNA is not a single thing.
It exists in many physical and biological forms, and those forms change how it moves, degrades, and gets detected.
That is what we organize with the "eDNA profile" concept.
#eDNAProfile
Packing for the #CRESST research cruise and preparing a manifest was not easy.
The neat part is we will have a full #eDNA workflow going in the ship itself - sampling, extraction, PCR, sequencing, and bioinformatics!
Our hopes are resting on many ways to tie things down 🪢 and seasickness pills!
The neat part is we will have a full #eDNA workflow going in the ship itself - sampling, extraction, PCR, sequencing, and bioinformatics!
Our hopes are resting on many ways to tie things down 🪢 and seasickness pills!
December 11, 2025 at 4:34 AM
This tiny thing is a fully functional thermocycler for up to 16 tubes.🤯
🧬 We will pair it with a MinION sequencer, an e-Gel and a tiny centrifuge for a field deployable eDNA lab that fits inside a suitcase.
#eDNA
🧬 We will pair it with a MinION sequencer, an e-Gel and a tiny centrifuge for a field deployable eDNA lab that fits inside a suitcase.
#eDNA
November 21, 2025 at 1:12 AM
This tiny thing is a fully functional thermocycler for up to 16 tubes.🤯
🧬 We will pair it with a MinION sequencer, an e-Gel and a tiny centrifuge for a field deployable eDNA lab that fits inside a suitcase.
#eDNA
🧬 We will pair it with a MinION sequencer, an e-Gel and a tiny centrifuge for a field deployable eDNA lab that fits inside a suitcase.
#eDNA
Funny geographic coincidence: drill straight through my hometown in Brazil and you land in the Philippine Sea… where I’ll be on a #UW #CRESST research cruise in a couple of months!!
Instead of New Year’s with family, I’ll be as far from home as I could get without being an astronaut 👨🚀.
#science
Instead of New Year’s with family, I’ll be as far from home as I could get without being an astronaut 👨🚀.
#science
November 19, 2025 at 3:48 AM
Happy 1000th life bird day!! 🐦 🥳
I went into a nearby hotspot today to get this done... it was a great one, complete with friendly local birders. 56 total sp with 13 lifers at once, which put me at 1004 life birds!
Not sure who the exact 1000th bird was, my best guess is the Water Rail!
I went into a nearby hotspot today to get this done... it was a great one, complete with friendly local birders. 56 total sp with 13 lifers at once, which put me at 1004 life birds!
Not sure who the exact 1000th bird was, my best guess is the Water Rail!
October 16, 2025 at 10:25 AM
Happy 1000th life bird day!! 🐦 🥳
I went into a nearby hotspot today to get this done... it was a great one, complete with friendly local birders. 56 total sp with 13 lifers at once, which put me at 1004 life birds!
Not sure who the exact 1000th bird was, my best guess is the Water Rail!
I went into a nearby hotspot today to get this done... it was a great one, complete with friendly local birders. 56 total sp with 13 lifers at once, which put me at 1004 life birds!
Not sure who the exact 1000th bird was, my best guess is the Water Rail!
🚀 The @ednacollab.bsky.social just launched the DIYNAFLUOR Microgrant 2025!
They’re offering materials + support to build a low-cost DIY fluorometer for eDNA quantification.
It can be as effective as Qubit at a % of the cost.
Great opportunity for anyone in #eDNA, #DIYBio, #CitizenScience 👇
They’re offering materials + support to build a low-cost DIY fluorometer for eDNA quantification.
It can be as effective as Qubit at a % of the cost.
Great opportunity for anyone in #eDNA, #DIYBio, #CitizenScience 👇
October 15, 2025 at 6:58 PM
🚀 The @ednacollab.bsky.social just launched the DIYNAFLUOR Microgrant 2025!
They’re offering materials + support to build a low-cost DIY fluorometer for eDNA quantification.
It can be as effective as Qubit at a % of the cost.
Great opportunity for anyone in #eDNA, #DIYBio, #CitizenScience 👇
They’re offering materials + support to build a low-cost DIY fluorometer for eDNA quantification.
It can be as effective as Qubit at a % of the cost.
Great opportunity for anyone in #eDNA, #DIYBio, #CitizenScience 👇
How many Nanopores is too many Nanopores to have running all at once? Well, @AdenIp has four (!!!!) up here at the @ednacollab.bsky.social right now 💢💢💢💢
Why, you ask?
"Why not?" - he says
Lots of air eDNA data coming out of the oven (literally, these basicalling GPUs warm up the room a lot 🔥🔥🔥)
Why, you ask?
"Why not?" - he says
Lots of air eDNA data coming out of the oven (literally, these basicalling GPUs warm up the room a lot 🔥🔥🔥)
October 3, 2025 at 4:07 AM
How many Nanopores is too many Nanopores to have running all at once? Well, @AdenIp has four (!!!!) up here at the @ednacollab.bsky.social right now 💢💢💢💢
Why, you ask?
"Why not?" - he says
Lots of air eDNA data coming out of the oven (literally, these basicalling GPUs warm up the room a lot 🔥🔥🔥)
Why, you ask?
"Why not?" - he says
Lots of air eDNA data coming out of the oven (literally, these basicalling GPUs warm up the room a lot 🔥🔥🔥)