FHL is made remarkable by the people who spend time here. This Tide Bite is about the loss of an important person to the FHL community – but one whose life, like many, intersected with FHL in a variety of ways spanning several decades. Joann Otto was part of the FHL family from when she was a graduate student to when she was a member of our Advancement Board as a retired professor – and with many roles and years in between. We miss her!
A Long-term Friday Harbor Laboratories Researcher
by Dr. M. Patricia Morse, Emerita faculty
Our UW Friday Harbor Laboratories (FHL) Advancement Board member and longtime “Labbie,” Dr. Joann J. Otto, died suddenly in March 2024. Joann in some ways personifies what it is to be a FHL researcher, so our readers might want to know more about her.
Joann was a graduate of Mount Holyoke College and went on to receive her Ph.D. as a student of Dr. Richard Campbell at the University of California, Irvine. Joann completed most of her Ph.D. research here at FHL, in close association with Labs Professors Bob Fernald and Paul Illg. Her early colleagues, who became lifetime friends (Figures 2 and 3), included UW graduate students Steve Stricker, George Shinn and Chris Reed. Joann was known for developing special techniques for her molecular studies on the role of large proteins in the motility in cells, and for collaborating with other graduate students and visiting FHL researchers on these techniques.
After several years as a postdoctoral student (at the University of Pennsylvania and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston with Joe Bryan), Joann joined the faculty at Purdue University. She continued her research at FHL during these years and built her “retirement” cabin on San Juan Island.
Joann’s research at FHL was based on groups of actin-binding proteins in the cytoskeleton of invertebrate eggs and coelomocytes. For example, she studied the contractile protein actin and its role in cytoskeleton changes of echinoid (sea urchin and sand dollar) coelomocytes. She also studied the assembly/disassembly of actin bundles in sea star oocytes during maturation, and the actin cytoskeleton rearrangements during fertilization in sea urchin eggs. She developed techniques to study these proteins in cell motility, including immunoblotting and immunoprecipitation methods as well as ways to visualize the proteins. Her 38 publications can be accessed for further information here.
It was love of family, many close friends in the Seattle area, and love of the natural environments in the Pacific northwest that brought Joann to accept a position as Chair of the Department of Biology at Western Washington University in 2004, a position she held until she retired in 2016. Her time at WWU is beautifully described by John Thompson here.
Joann was nationally recognized for her multiple accomplishments in PULSE (Partnership for Undergraduate Life Sciences), which was co-funded by NIH, NSF, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Joann was named as one of 40 nationwide leaders (Ambassadors) of the program in 2012. She used this passion for inclusive, high-quality science education to spearhead change in numerous Northwest colleges, universities and community colleges.
Throughout Joann’s time associated with the FHL community, she participated in the numerous parties that Ruth and Paul Illg had at their westside beach. Joann was always the expert cook (Figure 4) and engaged in science conversations with many international visitors. She was also a supporter of the E.S. Morse Scholar Exchange program, which links scholars between FHL and Japan (Figure 5).
Joann joined the FHL Advancement Board in 2006. Her energy, thoughtfulness, and realistic approach to problems in discussions came from a reliable research and education background. It will be sorely missed!
After retirement, Joann engaged with many activities of the San Juan Preservation Trust and was passionate about preserving local special places. She took every opportunity to learn from island experts about birds (she especially liked hawks) and terrestrial environments (especially flowers and mushrooms). She quietly brought that expertise – plus her own extensive knowledge of intertidal habitats – on SJ Preservation Trust field trips which she loved.
We are so pleased that a memorial stone bench will be installed at FHL in Joann’s honor. Future science leaders may meet there, peacefully contemplate the wonder of the ocean, and perhaps her contributions will help guide their innovations.
Tide Bites is a monthly email with the latest news and stories about Friday Harbor Labs. Want more? Subscribe to Tide Bites or browse the archives.