| Field of Study: | Population and Evolutionary Genomics |
| Title: | Assistant Professor |
| Degrees: | PhD. Biological and Biomedical, Emory University |
| Homepage: | Homepage/Lab Web Site Link |
| Google Scholar: |  Google Scholar |
| Office: | 429B Heald Hall |
| Email: | omar.cornejo@wsu.edu |
| Phone: | 509-335-0179 |
| Fax: | nan |
| Mailing Address: | School of Biological Sciences Washington State University PO Box 644236 Pullman,WA 99164-4236 |
Our ability to understand how pathogens and hosts have adapted to each other, requires a deep understanding of how basic evolutionary processes that have shaped the genetic architecture of these organisms. In my research, we use a multidisciplinary approach that combines computational biology, population genetic/genomic analyses, phylogenetics, simple mathematical modeling, and wet lab experiments to address these issues. Developing a better understanding of the forces shaping the genetic architecture of organisms will have enormous implications on the design of strategies for the management of populations and species of interest.
We are interested in the inference of the evolutionary history of populations and how genomic data can be used to learn. We apply these methods to answer questions in different systems: i) Humans; ii) Bacteria; iii) Malarial parasites; and iv) Plants. Yet the questions addressed in these systems are similar in nature. Some of the questions we address in our research are:
I. How important is homologous recombination for the evolution of traits involved in host shifts or adaptation to new environments?
ii. During which stages of the complex life cycle of organisms do we expect to find hotspots of adaptation?
iii. How has the demographics impacts the accumulation of deleterious mutations, impacting the fitness of individuals
iv. What is the demographic (population decline/growth) and selection scenario (selection coefficient, mode of selection and initial frequency) that explains the evolution of adaptive variants in populations. This question is especially important while trying to understand the evolution of disease resistance mechanisms and the evolution of virulence factors
We are experts in the generation and analysis of next generation sequencing data and we provide a great learning environment for students and postdocs with a quantitative inclination.
If interested in any of these topics, do not hesitate in contacting me at omar.cornejo@wsu.edu to discuss possibilities to join the lab.