Stephanie Forschner-Dancause

Dr. Stephanie Forschner-Dancause is an Associate Teaching Professor at the University of Rhode Island, where she serves as Director of the BSPS Programs and Director of the Certificate Program in Cannabis Studies. Her office is located in Avedisian Hall on the Kingston campus. With a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences from URI and postdoctoral training at Salve Regina University, she bridges microbial ecology with pharmaceutical applications.

Education

• Postdoctoral Fellowship, Salve Regina University
• Ph.D., Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Rhode Island
• B.S., Marine Biology, minor in Chemistry, University of Rhode Island

Research Focus

Her work centers on discovering microbial natural products from marine environments that influence human health and ecological systems. Key interests include quorum sensing mechanisms in bacteria, structure-activity relationships of bioactive compounds, and antibiotic discovery from extreme marine habitats like deep-sea sediments and Arctic basins. This interdisciplinary research spans pharmaceutical sciences, microbiology, and marine biotechnology.

Publication Trends

Her 7 most recent publications (2009-2019) demonstrate consistent focus on marine microbial natural products with pharmaceutical potential. Early work explored microbial diversity in Arctic sediments, later evolving toward quorum sensing inhibition strategies and marine-derived antibiotics. Recent articles emphasize translational applications, including designing analogs of bacterial metabolites to disrupt pathogenic communication.