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Invertebrate PathoSystems

Dr Christopher Coates

Christopher Coates

Christopher J Coates, PhD, FHEA is the Principal Investigator of the Invertebrate PathoSystems Lab in Zoology at the University of Galway (2022 – present) and the President of the Irish Society for Parasitology (http://www.irishparasitology.com). Christopher gained his BSc (Hons) in Biological & Biomedical Sciences at Maynooth University before undertaking a PhD in Comparative Immunology at the University of Stirling in Scotland. Following an NERC-funded postdoctoral position in Marine Molecular Microbiology, Christopher secured a permanent lectureship at Swansea University in Wales. Between 2015 and 2022, Christopher raised several million euro in grant funding, managed a productive laboratory that published >50 articles across >20 species of invertebrate (including the book – Invertebrate Pathology), and was promoted to Professor (Associate -> Full -> Honorary). In 2022, Christopher relocated to Zoology at the University of Galway and the Ryan Institute. Christopher is currently the Head of Year 4, Zoology and lectures across the Zoology and Marine Sciences courses, including Marine Disease Ecology, Invertebrate Biology, and Animals in Captivity.

Research Themes

Invertebrate Host-Pathogen Interactions. Examples include the impacts of parasitic dinoflagellates (Hematodinium ), isopods (Bopyrus spp.) and barnacles (Sacculina spp.) on decapod crustaceans.
Marine disease outbreaks and climate change. Dynamics of infectious and non-infectious stressors on life below water, including, temperature, noise-related stress and toxins.
Developing insect larvae, notably Galleria mellonella, as alternative hosts to rodents for toxicology and studies of innate immunity.
The multifunctionality and evolution of oxygen-transport proteins, such as, haemocyanins.
Health-Stress-Welfare considerations in captive invertebrates, e.g., cultured tropical (Penaeus ) prawns.

Selected Articles

Conneely, E. A., & Coates, C. J. (2025). Haematological deterioration of Hematodinium-infected decapod crustaceans. Developmental & Comparative Immunology, 163, 105307.

Shinn, A. P., Wongwaradechkul, R., Coates, C. J., Limakom, T., Yamuen, N., Liễu, N. Ý., ... & Poulain, M. (2025). Confirmed spread of Vibrio parahaemolyticus by aerosols is a risk factor in the infection of shrimp ponds. Aquaculture, 598, 741923.

Coates, C. J., & Nairn, J. (2025). Non-specific electrostatic interactions and the conversion of horseshoe crab haemocyanin into a phenoloxidase. Developmental & Comparative Immunology, 105401

Conneely, E. A., & Coates, C. J. (2024). Meta‐analytic assessment of physiological markers for decapod crustacean welfare. Fish and Fisheries, 25(1), 134-150.

Molto-Martin, I., Neil, D. M., Coates, C. J., MacKenzie, S. A., Bass, D., Stentiford, G. D., & Albalat, A. (2024). Infection of Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) by the parasite Hematodinium sp.: insights from 30 years of field observations. Royal Society Open Science, 11(1), 231147.

Rowley, A. F., Baker-Austin, C., Boerlage, A. S., Caillon, C., Davies, C. E., Duperret, L., ... & Coates, C. J. (2024). Diseases of marine fish and shellfish in an age of rapid climate change. Iscience, 27(9).

Coates, C. J., Kraev, I., Rowley, A. F., & Lange, S. (2023). Extracellular vesicle signatures and protein citrullination are modified in shore crabs (Carcinus maenas) infected with Hematodinium sp. Virulence, 14(1), 2180932.

Rowley, A. F., & Coates, C. J. (2023). Shell disease syndromes of decapod crustaceans. Environmental Microbiology, 25(5), 931-947.

Sabockytė, A., McAllister, S., Coates, C. J., & Lim, J. (2023). Effect of acute ultraviolet radiation on Galleria mellonella health and immunity. Journal of invertebrate pathology, 198, 107899.

Davies, C. E., Thomas, J. E., Malkin, S. H., Batista, F. M., Rowley, A. F., & Coates, C. J. (2022). Hematodinium sp. infection does not drive collateral disease contraction in a crustacean host. Elife, 11, e70356.

Maria Costa‐Paiva, E., Mello, B., Santos Bezerra, B., Coates, C. J., Halanych, K. M., Brown, F., ... & Trindade, R. I. (2022). Molecular dating of the blood pigment hemocyanin provides new insight into the origin of animals. Geobiology, 20(3), 333-345.

Albalat, A., Zacarias, S., Coates, C. J., Neil, D. M., & Planellas, S. R. (2022). Welfare in farmed decapod crustaceans, with particular reference to Penaeus vannamei. Frontiers in Marine Science, 9, 886024.