UNC Bioinformatics and Computational Biology

Anthony Zannas, MD, MSc, PhD

December 18, 2018

Anthony Zannas, MD, MSc, PhD

Associate Professor of

Psychiatry and Genetics

Core Faculty
Phone: 919-962-4918 | Office: 438 Taylor Hall
Email: anthony_zannas@med.unc.edu | Website: http://www.zannaslab.org/

Research Areas: Bioinformatics, Computational Genomics, Computation Systems Biology.
Research Interests: Our lab seeks to uncover the epigenetic mechanisms linking psychosocial stress with disease risk.


Wesley R Legant, PhD

September 18, 2018

Wesley R Legant, PhD

Joint Assistant Professor of

Biomedical Engineering and Pharmacology

Resource Faculty
Phone: (919) 966-4816 | Office: 4047 Genetic Medicine Building
Email: legantw@email.unc.edu | Website: https://www.med.unc.edu/pharm/people/primaryfaculty/wesley-r-legant/wesley-r-legant

Research Areas: Computational Biophysics, Image Analysis
Research Interests: Microscopy, 3D image analysis, biomaterials, cell migration, cancer metastasis, tissue engineering


Daniel Dominguez, PhD

September 17, 2018

Daniel Dominguez, PhD

Associate Professor of

Pharmacology

Core Faculty
Phone: (919) 966-0131 | Office: 4113 Genetic Medicine Building
Email: didoming@email.unc.edu | Website: https://dominguez-lab.org/

Research Areas: Bioinformatics, Comparative Genomics and Molecular Evolution, Computational Genomics, Computational Systems Biology
Research Interests: The Dominguez lab studies how gene expression is controlled by proteins that bind RNA. We apply high-throughput biochemical and computational approaches to understand protein-RNA interactions, RNA processing, and gene regulation in normal and disease biology.


Brian Strahl, PhD

August 31, 2018

Brian Strahl, PhD

Professor and Vice-Chair of

Biochemistry & Biophysics

Resource Faculty
Phone: (919) 843-3896 | Office: 3060 Genetic Medicine
Email: brian_strahl@med.unc.edu | Website: http://www.med.unc.edu/~bstrahl/

Research Areas: Bioinformatics, Computational Biophysics, Computational Genomics
Research Interests: Our lab is interested in the role that histone post-translational modifications have in chromatin biology. Specifically, we are studying how enzymes that ‘write’ and ‘read’ histone modifications contribute to the function of chromatin and DNA-templated functions like gene transcription. To do so, we are employing a range of model organisms (yeast to mammalian cells) and approaches (genomics, genetics, biochemistry, biophysics as well as proteomics) that, together, are elucidating how readers and writer enzymes function to sculpt the chromatin landscape and regulate gene transcription. Students who join our lab would be involved in multiple UNC collaborations (as well as have individual projects) that would provide wide exposure these model systems and techniques.


Daniel Schrider, PhD

August 30, 2018

Daniel Schrider, PhD

Associate Professor of

Genetics

Core Faculty
Phone: (919) 843-6475 | Office: 5047 Genetic Medicine Building
Email: dschride@email.unc.edu | Website: https://www.schriderlab.org/

Research Areas: Bioinformatics, Comparative Genomics and Molecular Evolution, Computational Genomics, Statistical and Population Genetics
Research Interests: We develop and apply computational tools to make inferences about evolution from population genomic datasets. Our research areas include the population genetics of adaptation, genomic copy number variants, and the application of supervised machine learning tools to evolutionary questions.


Cavin Ward-Caviness, PhD

August 30, 2018

Cavin Ward-Caviness, PhD

Computational Biologist/Principal Investigator of

US EPA

Core Faculty
Phone: (919) 966-5445 | Office: 104 Mason Farm Road
Email: ward-caviness.cavin@epa.gov | Website: https://www.wc-lab.com/

Research Areas: Computational Genomics, Statistical and Population Genetics
Research Interests: My primary research interest is in using large clinical databases to uncover environmental and social health risks. In addition I am interested in furthering the use of machine learning in environmental epidemiology and uncovering molecular biomarkers for environmental health risk and the molecular mechanisms by which environmental exposures are translated into health outcomes.


Shehzad Sheikh, MD, PhD

August 30, 2018

Shehzad Sheikh, MD, PhD

Associate Professor of

Genetics and Medicine

Resource Faculty
Phone: (919) 966-0745 | Office: 7320 Medical Biomolecular Research Building
Email: sheisx@med.unc.edu | Website: http://sheikhlab.web.unc.edu/

Research Areas: Bioinformatics, Computational Genomics, Computational Systems Biology
Research Interests: We seek to understand how information is encoded and dynamically utilized in immune cells from healthy and disease prone intestines (Crohn’s disease and Ulcerative colitis). We focus specifically on genes that regulate response to the bacteria that normally reside in our intestines. We use genome-sequencing technology to precisely identify regions throughout the genome that are potential ‘on’ or ‘off’ switches for these genes.


Ian Davis, MD, PhD

August 29, 2018

Ian Davis, MD, PhD

G. Denman Hammond Professor of

Genetics and Pediatrics

Resource Faculty
Phone: (919) 966-5360 | Office: 21-219 Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center
Email: ian_davis@med.unc.edu | Website: http://davislab.web.unc.edu/

Research Areas: Computational Genomics, Bioinformatics
Research Interests: Epigenomic and transcriptomic consequences of genetic alterations in cancer and applications to therapeutic discovery.