Erik Ehli

Erik Ehli serves as Medical Associate Professor in Biomedical & Translational Sciences and Assistant Professor in Psychiatry at the University of South Dakota's Sanford School of Medicine. His research bridges clinical psychiatry with genetic epidemiology, specializing in twin studies to dissect nature-nurture interactions in complex diseases.

Education:

• Ph D, Basic Biomedical Sciences, University of South Dakota, 2013
• BS, Nursing, South Dakota State University, 2005
• MS, Basic Biomedical Sciences, University of South Dakota, 2004
• BS, Biology, Northern State University, 1998

Dr. Ehli's research program centers on twin genetics to quantify hereditary versus environmental contributions across multiple domains. His work spans cancer genetics (investigating familial aggregation), pharmacogenetics (drug response variability), and complex disease genetics (integrating multi-omics approaches). The Nature versus Nurture framework underpins all investigations, utilizing twin cohorts to isolate genetic effects from environmental confounders in psychiatric and metabolic conditions.

Recent publications demonstrate methodological diversity: genomic sequencing of medicinal leech models (2020), neurobehavioral phenotyping in alcohol-affected populations (2018), and translational phytochemical trials (2012). This portfolio reveals consistent focus on gene-environment interplay across species and experimental paradigms, with increasing emphasis on molecular mechanisms underlying psychiatric and metabolic disorders.