معرفی
Ellen Leffler is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Genetics at the University of Utah. Her research focuses on evolutionary and population genetics in humans and non-human primates, particularly studying structural variation and its functional consequences in relation to infectious diseases like malaria.
- Education: B.A. from Amherst College, M.Phil. from University of Cambridge, Ph.D. from University of Chicago
The Leffler lab develops computational methods to analyze genomic datasets, with emphasis on copy number variation (CNVs) in repetitive genomic regions and their role in host-pathogen interactions. Current projects include comparative genomic studies of malaria parasites in macaques and modeling evolutionary forces shaping malaria-protective alleles globally.
Her work integrates joint analyses of host and pathogen genomes to understand disease susceptibility in evolutionary contexts. Research spans immunogenetics, recombination mechanisms, and adaptation in primate populations exposed to malaria.
- Scientific Networks: Collaborator in MalariaGEN Consortium
Her lab combines fieldwork in Southeast Asia with genomic methodologies to investigate structural variation at immune gene clusters and malaria resistance loci.
