The work, in partnership with UFRJ, aims to describe the morphology of the embryo of the electric ray Narcine brasiliensis, identifying the stages of development throughout gestation, seeking sexual dimorphism between males and females, comparing the different stages of growth (embryo, neonate and adult), expanding knowledge about the life cycle of Brazilian rays and contributing information for their conservation.

The study is a pioneer in the development of the cultivation protocol for native and invasive species of the genus Megabalanus, common on ships and oil platforms, and has the purpose of testing anti-fouling agents on larvae and the survival of adults subjected to different water temperatures.

Given the threats to coral reefs and their importance for various animals that live in this ecosystem, coral farming will provide the creation of new techniques for growing these corals in situ through a microbial consortium known as BMC (Bacterial Microorganisms for Corals).

In a partnership between the AquaRio Scientific Research Center and the Molecular Microbial Ecology Laboratory (LEMM) of the UFRJ Institute of Microbiology and the Plant Biotechnology and Bioprocesses Program (PBV) of UFRJ, an innovative study began in October 2016 which aims to protect and restore coral reefs around the world threatened by bleaching and other diseases. The innovative approach of this ongoing research, which has proven to be extremely sustainable and viable and which aims to protect and restore coral reefs around the world threatened by bleaching and other diseases, establishes the beneficial manipulation of natural marine microbiomes, which are already there and are native to these ecosystems, to protect these coral environments.

Unprecedented research with rays and sharks with the aim of identifying whether elasmobranchs transfer the maternal microbiota, that is, the bacteria that inhabit the living being, to the offspring, as occurs in mammals, or whether the microbiota is acquired after birth.