John Sproul

John Sproul serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology at Brigham Young University's College of Life Sciences, where he leads genomic research focused on insect systematics and evolution. His work primarily investigates stoneflies (Plecoptera) and ground beetles (Carabidae), utilizing advanced sequencing technologies to address challenges in genome assembly and repetitive DNA analysis.

Dr. Sproul's research spans entomology, genomics, and evolutionary biology with emphasis on genome size evolution, phylogenomic relationships, and species delimitation in non-model organisms. His lab employs long-read sequencing to assemble chromosome-scale genomes for taxa like the giant salmonfly and Taiwanese goosefoot, revealing dynamics of repetitive elements and centromere evolution. This work bridges classical taxonomy with modern genomic approaches to advance understanding of biodiversity and evolutionary processes.

Analysis of his 2021-2025 publications shows consistent focus on insect genomics, particularly in overcoming repeat-rich region assembly challenges. Key trends include development of bioinformatics tools (e.g., RepeatProfiler), pangenome applications for studying LTR dynamics, and integration of museum specimens with genomic data for species discovery. His research demonstrates growing emphasis on cross-taxon comparative genomics and methodological innovations for biodiversity-scale analyses.

Scientific Awards:

• No awards documented in provided sources

Dr. Sproul mentors graduate students in BYU's Biology programs, though specific advisees are not listed in available materials. His research appears supported by collaborative grants enabling genomic sequencing and bioinformatics infrastructure, as evidenced by multi-institutional publications with Columbia University and The Salmonfly Project, though grant details remain unspecified.

The Sproul Lab operates within BYU's Life Sciences building, maintaining active collaborations with The Salmonfly Project (Missoula) and Columbia University's Ecology department. The team specializes in extracting insights from degraded DNA in historical specimens while advancing chromosome-scale assembly techniques for challenging insect genomes, contributing to both conservation efforts and fundamental evolutionary theory.