Salil Garg

Dr. Salil Garg is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at Yale School of Medicine. He leads the Garg Lab which moved to Yale University in fall 2022 after his postdoctoral fellowship with Phillip Sharp at MIT. His research focuses on understanding how cell systems with identical genetic material generate heterogeneity in development and cancer.

Dr. Garg's educational background includes:

• BS/MS in Biochemistry/Chemistry, University of Chicago (2003)
• PhD in Immunology and MD from Harvard Medical School (2012)
• Clinical training in Laboratory Medicine and Molecular Genetic Pathology
• Postdoctoral fellowship at MIT

His research explores how non-genetic changes arise naturally in cell populations, particularly in development and cancer. The Garg Lab investigates how small RNAs and other gene regulatory events contribute to non-genetic differences between cells, using approaches from RNA biology, cell biology, genomics, machine learning, and data science. They aim to apply this knowledge to build novel cancer diagnostics.

Analysis of Dr. Garg's recent publications reveals a consistent focus on cellular heterogeneity mechanisms across developmental and cancer contexts. His work bridges stem cell biology with cancer diagnostics, increasingly incorporating machine learning approaches. Key themes include transcription factor networks, enhancer biology, microRNA regulation, and developmental deconvolution techniques for cancer classification.

Scientific recognition includes:

• NIH High-Risk, High-Reward Award (2024)

Dr. Garg actively mentors a diverse team of researchers including postdoctoral associates, MD-PhD students, PhD students, and undergraduate researchers. His lab has successfully placed alumni in prestigious positions at institutions including Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Stanford University, and Bluebird Bio. Current research is supported by NIH funding and focuses on generative AI models for understanding heterogeneity, deconstructing tumor heterogeneity, and genomic encoding of cellular variation.

The Garg Lab maintains active collaborations across Yale, including with the Center for RNA Science and Medicine, Computational Biology and Biomedical Informatics, Genomics, Genetics, and Epigenetics programs, and the Yale Cancer Center.