Research Projects

​Functional genomics of sex chromosomes in development and reproduction

Sex chromosomes (X and Y) are some of the most complex and interesting parts of the genome. In addition to their extensive roles in sex determination, reproduction, and disease; they are also hotspots for rapid evolution and complex gene regulation. Our work uses the natural variation of sex chromosomes from diverse species, as natural experiments to explore how gene regulation and chromatin evolve. Our goal is to link structural variation that accumulates on sex chromosomes to complex changes in genome regulation and organization. We are exploring the role of these changes in both normal physiology and disease in reproduction and early development. 

Comparative and population genomics of adaptive and selfish evolution 

 A longstanding goal of genetics is to link mutations to traits. In the wake of advancing genome technologies that allow us to assemble near complete genomes, we are interested in understanding the causes and consequences of complex structural variation. We use whole genome comparisons between closely related species, and population sampling within species to identify the evolutionary history, and signatures of selection acting on complex genetic variation, including: insertions, deletions, and gene copy number variation. We suspect that some of this variation has evolved as adaptations to  environmental variables, while other variants have evolved mal-adaptively (selfishly) by biasing the transmission of themselves during meiosis and fertilization.  The goal is to distinguish these possibilities by linking natural variation to either adaptive phenotypes or transmission distortion. This work has broad applications for understanding the role of genomic variation in health and disease. 

Comparative and evolutionary reproductive biology

Genes involved in reproduction are often some of the fastest evolving in the genome. The increased rate is likely influenced by sexual selection, sperm competition, and genetic conflicts. Rapid evolution of reproductive genes can lead to changes in reproductive systems ultimately resulting in speciation or infertility. Understanding how these systems evolve, how they are disrupted by genetic divergence, and whether their breakdown contributes to reproductive barriers will provide new insight into the molecular origins of speciation and reproductive biology. We are particularly interested in spermatogenesis and studying the role of gene regulation and genetic conflict and how it can affect the production of healthy sperm. We are studying the complex gene regulation and post-transcriptional modifications of RNA in developing sperm across diverse species. By understanding the diversity of reproduction across species, we can better understand the causes of infertility.

Integrating single cell and functional genomics in to evolutionary frameworks

We specialize in developing bioinformatic pipelines to analyze single cell RNA and other epigenomic (ATAC, ChIP) sequencing experiments. We are especially interested in developing methods that integrate these types of experiments into evolutionary and population genetic frameworks, and we have experience applying these methods in diverse model and non-model systems.