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Dan Distel
Director, Ocean Genome Legacy Center & Professor of Marine Science at Northeastern University
(781) 581 7370
Expertise
Marine Biology, Marine Science, Oceanography

Dan Distel in the Press

Dan Distel for Northeastern Global News

A mother whale and her calf swimming in the ocean, seen from above.

What impact would a proposed change to the Endangered Species Act have on marine plants and animals?

Scientists say preserving marine habitats has benefits for humans as well as endangered and threatened animals and plants.
A newly discovered mussel seen under a microscope.

New species of mussel that lives in an ancient undersea forest discovered by Northeastern marine scientist

The discovery makes the tiny mussel the first species found as part of the Ocean Census project to discover 100,000 species in a decade
A presumed baby great white shark in the ocean.

Was a baby great white shark caught on camera for the first time? Northeastern expert explains why it could be major discovery 

Northeastern marine biologist Dan Distel said if accurate the discovery could major significance in helping study and protect the species.
Photo of a shipworm

Unlike humans, shipworms have no problem with bacteria getting in their cells. Why?

There’s a fine line between helpful bacteria and harmful bacteria, says Dan Distel, who directs the Ocean Genome Legacy Center. Studying the helpful kind in shipworms may help researchers understand dangerous infections in humans.

Here’s what we can learn from the bacteria in the clam that sank a thousand ships

Shipworms are long, thin mollusks famed (and feared) for their ability to eat wood. They rely on bacterial partners to break the wood down into nutrients they can use. Studying these bacteria could reveal more efficient ways to use the wood and plant waste generated on land, says marine biologist Dan Distel.

It’s a clam that dresses in pinstripes and devours wood

Researchers from Northeastern’s Ocean Genome Legacy Center in Nahant, Massachusetts, discovered a new species of wood-boring clam in the Philippines.

New York authorities and Ocean Genome Legacy Center investigate fish mislabeling, revealing fakes

An investigation by the New York State attorney general's office and Northeastern's Ocean Genome Legacy Center has shown that species are misidentified in more than a quarter of the fish sold at New York grocery stores.

It’s #CephalopodWeek! Here’s all you need to know about the stealthiest creatures in the ocean.

Type “cephalopod camouflage” into YouTube and be prepared to gasp. Cephalopods—which include octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish—can change their color, shape, and texture to blend in with their background. “They are charismatic and very smart,” said Dan Distel, director of Northeastern’s Ocean Genome Legacy Center. “They’re the most intelligent invertebrates, as far as we know.”

‘Unicorn’ shipworm could reveal clues about human medicine and bacterial infections

Northeastern professor Daniel Distel and his colleagues have discovered a dark slithering creature four feet long that dwells in the foul mud of a remote lagoon in the Philippines. They say studying the giant shipworm could add to our understanding of how bacteria cause infections and, in turn, how we might adapt to tolerate—and even benefit from—them.

Researchers discover new digestive strategy in shipworms

An international research team led by Dan Distel, director of the Ocean Genome Legacy at Northeastern University, has discovered a novel digestive strategy in a wood-boring clam. The breakthrough, the researchers say, may also be a game-changer for the industrial production of clean biofuels.