Academic Affiliation
Assistant Professor, School of Life Sciences in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Credentials
PhD, 2000, State University of New York at Stony Brook
Bio
Dr. Brian Verrelli’s research focuses on molecular population genetics and molecular evolution. He is interested in the roles that evolutionary forces such as genetic drift, population demography, and natural selection play in governing both genetic and phenotypic variation across taxa. In characterizing the patterns of molecular variation within and between populations and species, he hopes to understand the relative contribution that natural selection makes in the maintenance of molecular variation and how this may explain differences at both the single gene and genomic level.
In addressing evolutionary questions at the molecular level, Dr. Verrelli’s research has included several taxonomic groups at a hierarchy of levels: from genes and genomes, to individuals, populations, and species. His research program utilizes much of the outstanding new molecular technology to not only focus on specific taxa to understand more about their biology and evolutionary history, but one that also utilizes different model organisms to address broad evolutionary principles using a comparative genomic approach.
Dr. Verrelli’s recent projects focus on using a population genetic approach to study human evolution. In examining global populations at the genetic level, we can understand how specific genetic and infectious diseases have originated and persisted and what evolutionary processes have enabled our species to adapt to them. A large component of this research is comparative genomic work with our closest relative, the chimpanzee. With these interspecific analyses we hope to tease apart the 1% of genetic variation that separates us from them and consequently makes our two lineages evolutionary unique for a suite of phenotypic traits including behavior, cognition, morphology, and response and adaptation to disease.