Dr Kate Barnes

Faculty: Education, Health and Sciences

School: School of Science

Subject Area: Forensic Sciences

 

Teaching responsibilities

I teach on the Biology, Zoology and Forensic Science undergraduate degree programmes:

• Introduction to Forensic Science
• Current Issues in Forensic Science
• Microbiology
• Crime Scene to Court
• Ecosystems

and lead the following modules:

• Trace Evidence
• Applied Entomology
• Medical Forensics

I also supervise Independent Studies in the area of Forensic Ecology and Medical Entomology. Some of my current students are investigating:

• Rates of decomposition and insect succession in different seasons
• The effect of drugs on blowfly development
• The factors influencing oviposition

Research interests

My research is focused within forensic and medical entomology. I study decomposition ecology and the interactions between different organisms found in the corpse environment. This work uses the natural world (Entomology, Microbiology, Botany and Mycology) to develop tools for Post Mortem Interval estimation. I am also interested in the antibacterial activity in carrion-feeding insects, the identification and isolation of novel antimicrobial products and their application in the medical and veterinary world.

Current projects include:

• Insect colonisation of covered and uncovered remains - Collaborative project with University of Lincoln.
• Microbial community changes linked with decomposition sequence - Collaborative project with University of Lincoln and Sheffield Hallam University.
• Production of Antimicrobial Peptides in Blowflies - Collaborative project with University of Bristol and IMBTUK.
• Effect of ancient egyptian embalming fluids on microbial activity and insect succession - Collaborative project with the University of York.

Membership of professional bodies and advisory committees

• Member of the Forensic Science Society
• Member of the European Association for Forensic Entomology
• Member of the Royal Entomological Society
• Member of the Society for General Microbiology
• Member of the Society for Experimental Biology

Recent Conferences

• Oral Presentation entitled: Using entomological evidence from a crime scene. Second Chester Conference on Forensics: Aspects of Conservation and Wildlife Crime, Chester, UK, March 2012
• Oral Presentation entitled: Calculating Post Mortem Interval from the natural world. BIT's 2nd Annual World Congress of Forensics, Chongqing, China October 2011
• Oral Presentation entitled: Insect succession in a woodland environment. Ento'11. Annual National Meeting of the Royal Entomological Society, Chatham, UK, September 2011
• Oral Presentation entitled: Carrion-feeding insect larvae produce small antibacterial components in their ES: potential for biomedical application? Ento'10. Annual National Meeting of the Royal Entomological Society, Swansea, UK, July 2010.
• Poster Presentation entitled: The influence of concentration and nutrient on the antibacterial activity in L. sericata excretion/secretion (ES): implications for liquid culture assays. Ento '09. Annual National Meeting of the Royal Entomological Society, Sheffield, UK, July 2009.
• Poster Presentation entitled: A model of the competitive interactions between the blowfly Lucilia sericata Meigen and pathogenic bacteria found on a corpse. European Association for Forensic Entomology 7th Annual Meeting, Uppsala, Sweden, June 2009.
• Poster Presentation entitled: An Assessment of the Antibacterial Activity in Larval Excretion/Secretion from Four Carrion Feeding Insect Species using Lucilia sericata (Meigen) as the Marker Species. British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, Spring Meeting, Birmingham, UK, April 2009.
• Poster Presentation entitled: Differences in the antibacterial activity of Lucilia sericata (Meigen) larval excretion/secretion compared to Calliphora vicina (R-D), Tenebrio molitor (L.) and Dermestes maculatus (DeGeer). American Society of Microbiology 108th General Meeting, Boston, USA, June 2008.

Additional Interests and Activities

• Reviewer for the Journal of Microbiological Methods, Immunology and Medical Microbiology, Ecological Entomology and Tropical Biomedicine.
• Forensic Entomology workshops and exhibitions as part of university outreach programs
• Member of the Dipterists Forum and Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Entomological Society
• Consultancy work

Media experience

What does the discovery of a mosquito species capable of transmitting West Nile Virus in the North Marshes of Kent mean? Radio Derby Mid-morning show with Aleena Naylor. Friday 17 February 2012.

Insects in Medicine. Radio Derby afternoon show with Andy Potter. Friday 26 August 2011.

How insects can help solve crimes. Radio Derby afternoon show with Andy Potter. Friday 1 July 2011.

1 in 3 people think sell by dates are nonsense so should we follow sell-by dates on food products? Radio Derby Mid-morning show with Aleena Naylor. Friday 24 September 2010.

Undergraduate qualifications

• BSc (Hons) Cognitive Science, University of Exeter

Postgraduate qualifications

• MSc Bioinformatics, University of Exeter

Research qualifications

• PhD in Forensic Science (Entomology), University of Lincoln

Research posts

Institution	Project	Dates
Sheffield Hallam University	Post-Doctoral Researcher	Janaury 2009-August 2010
University of Lincoln	Research Assistant	August 2005-December 2008

Edit this person's details

Site Map

Undergraduate courses
Postgraduate and professional courses
International students
Online courses
Services for business

Part time courses
Buxton College
School leavers 16+
About the University
Job vacancies

Research
Faculties
Departments
Press and Community
Staff search