Graduate Students

Tatum Simonson

Patterns of human genetic diversity are shaped by natural processes such as migration or natural selection.  I am interested in investigating how these forces influence patterns of extant human genetic variation in three unique human populations using high-throughput genomic surveys.  Two of the population studies I am currently working on combine genome-wide analyses with mitochondrial and Y chromosomal information to test specific hypotheses about population migration and sex-specific gene flow in Island Southeast Asia and Central Africa.  In the third component of my research, I couple genome-wide information with phenotypic measurements to search for signatures of selection in a high-altitude population from Tibet.  These three studies will lead to a better understanding of how cultural and environmental factors affect human genetic variation and evolution.

Wilfred Wu

J. Michael Gee