Matt Pennell

Matt Pennell is an Associate Professor of Computational Biology at Cornell University, specializing in evolutionary biology, immunology, and phylogenetics. His lab develops computational and statistical methods to study how evolutionary, epidemiological, and immunological processes shape biological diversity.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology from the University of Idaho (supervised by Dr. Luke Harmon)
• B.Sc. Honors in Biological Sciences from Simon Fraser University

Research focuses include:

• Evolution of functional genomic characteristics (e.g., gene expression) via population genetic processes
• Adaptive immune system evolution and pathogen defense
• Diversity patterns in biological lineages across macroevolution and epidemiology

Scientific Awards:

• Theodosius Dobzhansky Prize (2019)
• Jasper Loftus-Hills Young Investigator Prize (2017)
• Canada Research Chair (2016, 2021)

Current lab members include Ph.D. students Katalin Voss, Yixin Zhu, Mark Kim, Qifan Wang, and Rituparna Banerjee. Former graduate students and postdoctoral fellows such as Dr. Francisco Henao-Diaz, Dr. Chris Muir, and Dr. Ailene MacPherson have also contributed to his research program.