معرفی
Matthew C. Keller is a Professor in the Psychology & Neuroscience department at the University of Colorado Boulder and serves as Director of the Institute for Behavioral Genetics. His research focuses on using measured genetic data, family data, and simulations to understand the causes of human complex trait variation, with particular emphasis on psychiatric disorders and behavioral phenotypes.
Dr. Keller received his formal training in statistics and psychology and has developed expertise in statistical genetics, evolutionary psychology, and quantitative methods. His lab is currently recruiting students for fall 2026 and postdoctoral fellows interested in developing innovative methods to understand complex trait genetic architecture.
His research interests span several interconnected areas: developing extended pedigree models to uncover genetic and environmental architecture of traits; creating models that use whole-genome data to uncover genetic architecture; studying the effects of distal inbreeding on complex traits; investigating gene-by-environment interactions; and utilizing whole-genome data to estimate assortative mating and vertical transmission. His work has evolved from studying depression heterogeneity to developing methods in extended twin family designs, and more recently to analyzing whole-genome data to understand trait genetic architecture.
Analysis of his recent publications reveals a strong focus on structural equation modeling approaches using polygenic scores, estimation of full heritability spectra across the relatedness spectrum, and understanding the environmental influences of parents on offspring. His work increasingly integrates whole-genome data with family-based designs to disentangle genetic and environmental influences.
- Fulker Award for best paper published in Behavioral Genetics (2011, 2021)
- Fuller/Scott Early Career Award from the Behavioral Genetics Association (2012)
- Faculty Research Award in Psychology & Neuroscience department (2019)
- Multiple awards for mentees including the Dozier/Muenzinger Award and Thompson Award
Dr. Keller has successfully mentored numerous postdocs and graduate students who have gone on to successful careers in behavioral genetics. His lab is funded by seven NIH grants totaling approximately $16.6M in direct costs, with Dr. Keller serving as Principal Investigator on four of these grants. He also leads the Workshop on Statistical Genetic Methods for Human Complex Traits, a major training venue for the next generation of behavioral geneticists.
His research group maintains strong collaborations with leading institutions worldwide, particularly with Peter Visscher and Naomi Wray's lab in Brisbane, Australia. The lab combines computational approaches with theoretical developments to advance our understanding of how genes and environments interact to shape human differences.
