The 21st century is fundamentally different from any other point in human history. We have achieved unprecedented technological advances and global connectivity. However, we are also faced with the emergence of new diseases that threaten our health and the loss of species and habitats that threatens our global economy
In my lab group, we integrate tools from genomics, bioinformatics, immunogenetics, and evolutionary biology to provide the basis for forecasting changes in biodiversity as well as unknown aspects of emergent diseases. This work empowers us to be better stewards of our planet and effectively respond to global threats to human health
We are currently focusing on three core research topics:
By harnessing the power of comparative evolutionary methods, our evolutionary informatics approaches work towards two overarching goals of our group. First we aim to illuminate general rules of vertebrate evolution. Second, we aim to utilize evolutionary biology to learn from the history of pathogen evolution to be able to address unknowns in the face of emergent diseases. Collectively, these goals empower us to be more effective stewards of our planet and also provide critical, quantitative context for public health decision making