Leveraging genome sequencing data to understand the targets of natural selection in the human genome. Natural selection is a major force in shaping human phenotypic variation, including susceptibility to disease. Our lab works to develop statistical tools to help understand the precise genomic targets of natural selection with the goal of linking genetic variants and molecular pathways to diseases and traits.
Dissecting the role of context-specific genetic effects in human disease. In many species, it is clear that the effect of genetic mutations depends on the context the mutations are expressed in (i.e., environmental exposures, tissue type, cell state, etc.). The extent to which context specificity plays a role in disease is unknown and our lab develops statistical tools to discover these interactions.
Developing statistical approaches to understand human evolutionary history. Genomic data is a rich source of information about the evolutionary history of our species. Our lab develops and applies statistical tools to model genomic variation to understand human evolution. This research has implications not only for understanding our history, but also for understanding the distribution of genetic variation within and between populations.