Member Faculty
Department: MBG
Research: Our research is focused on discovering basic principles that determine the amount of diversity that exists within and between the genomes of organisms, and how we can use that diversity to understand organismal diversity, to discover novel genes, to maximize human health, and to advance agriculture. Our research is carried out primarily with Drosophila, though past work has included mammals and plants. Our current research aims to evaluate the evolutionary flexibility of the genes that regulate germline stem cell maintenance and differentiation using combined population and functional genomic approaches.
Department: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Research: The origin of new traits is one of the primary factors promoting the evolution of biodiversity. In the Babonis Lab, we use the dynamic processes of embryogenesis and tissue morphogenesis to understand how novel traits arise. One of our primary interests focuses on understanding the evolution of novel cell types, including the cnidocytes (“stinging” cells) of cnidarians.
Research: We do most of our research with maize because it is the world's largest production crop and it has perhaps the most fascinating and powerful genetics of any crop. We work to address three questions: How does genetic variation give rise to phenotypic variation? How can we use genetics to make agriculture more efficient, productive, and globally healthy? and How can we reduce the impact of agriculture on the environment?
Research: We use genomic and molecular tools to examine microbial diversity in soils. We seek to understand the ecological and evolutionary mechanisms that regulate microbial diversity and its impact on soil processes.
Department: Molecular Biology and Genetics
Research: Population genetics focused on empirical and analytical problems associated with genetic variation in populations. Research focuses on the genetic basis of adaptive variation in natural populations with emphasis on quantitative modeling of phenotypes as networks of interacting genes.
Department: Entomology
Research: Our lab focuses on the biology and evolution of wild, solitary bees. We use phylogenomics to reconstruct evolutionary relationships, employ collections-based data to document local and global patterns of biodiversity, use metagenomics to characterize the microbial community of the bee brood cell, and seek to understand the role that wild bees play in crop pollination
Department: Baker Institute & Biomedical Sciences
Research: We study how gene expression patterns are encoded in Metazoan DNA sequences, and how these patterns contribute to evolution, development, and disease. We use a variety of computational methods from statistical modeling and machine learning, in combination with molecular approaches to prepare next-generation sequencing libraries (e.g., GRO-seq, RNA-seq, etc).