DARTMOUTH — In a genetics lab at UMass Dartmouth, students are investigating clownfish genes and — literally — finding Nemo.


"It's nice because this helps solidify concepts from lectures and gives them a taste of what research is like," said biology professor Robert Drew who has been exploring the enigmatic relationship between clownfish and sea anemone. For his efforts, Drew has also been awarded a prestigious National Science Foundation CAREER award that recognizes young, rising faculty members, according to a press release from the university.

Poisonous to other fish, the tentacled sea anemone is home to the little orange and white fish popularized in a 2003 Disney movie. As the clownfish is small and a poor swimmer, anemone offer it good shelter from prey.

"It's an interaction I am interested in," said Drew.

He said he believes sea anemone "fire up the stinging cells" when they detect prey but that clownfish mucus does not activate the poison.

"Basically, if it tastes like food, they sting it," he said. "Somehow the clownfish makes itself invisible to the anemone."

The NSF award will provide $850,000 over five years to fund Drew's work exploring the mysterious physiological relationship. It will also help integrate his research in elementary schools through a partnership with the New Bedford Ocean Explorium.

Given how competitive national grant funding has become, Drew said he was surprised to be a recipient but is glad he can continue his work.

"The techniques are still very expensive so it's small steps," he said.

This is his third federally-funded grant this year, including $150,000 from the USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture to investigate a genetic link between stress and growth in rainbow trout. He also received $125,000 in NSF funding on a joint project using DNA markers to investigate competition between roots of different old field plant species, the release stated.

As a child, Drew said he liked animals so his parents bought him many books; he remembers one about clownfish. He shared some random facts — it is among the first tropical reef fish to be bred in captivity; there are 26 species; the clownfish gene has not been sequenced yet; although small, the clownfish is protective of its anemone home and will try to chase away predators.

"They don't hurt but they have a lot of aggression," Drew said.

Drew, who lives in Middleboro, said he and his wife "watch a lot of cartoons."

"I bring up 'Finding Nemo' a lot when talking about my research," he said, hoping he can help teach about "the charisma of this brightly colored fish" to interest K-12 students in biology.