Yale Genetics Research Labs

The Bale lab uses high-throughput sequencing for diagnosis of hereditary disorders and cancer, and uses exome or genome sequencing to understand the basis of human disease.

Dr. Chen is leading a research group to seek global understandings of the molecular and cellular factors controlling disease progression and immunity. His group continuously invents versatile systems that enable rapid identification of novel targets and development of new modalities of cancer immunotherapy, cell therapy and gene therapy.

Investigating dynamic systems in lung injury and regeneration.

The Cooley lab is interested in the cellular mechanisms that underlie polarity and cell growth during development.

The Giraldez Lab investigates the regulatory codes that governs gene expression during vertebrate development after fertilization.

The Greco Labaratory goal is to define how tissues maintain themselves throughout the course of our lives in the face of continuous cellular turnover, frequent injuries, and spontaneous mutations.

The Hammarlund lab studies neuronal degeneration, regeneration, and cell fate. The lab aims to discover fundamental mechanisms by which neurons choose their fate and form neuronal circuits, and later how these neurons and circuits respond to injury, disease, and age.

The Horwich lab studies misfolding-induced neurodegeneration caused by mutant forms of the cytosolic enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD1), which produce a dominant-inherited form of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) with progressive motor neuron dysfunction that leads to lethal paralysis.

The Lesch lab applies both experimental and computational approaches to understand how epigenetic memory works, and how it affects development of individuals and evolution of species. The lab is especially interested in epigenetic poising, a chromatin state that may prepare parts of the germ cell genome for future use during embryo development.

The Li laboratory focuses on the structural and functional characterization of human chromosome abnormalities. The goals are to identify disease-causing genes or bio-markers of diagnostic and prognostic values, and to dissect underlying molecular mechanisms

The Lim laboratory studies 1) the molecular basis of cellular pathology in neurodegenerative diseases, and 2) the mechanisms of brain development, function and its associated neurological disorders.

The Massilani lab utilizes ancient DNA to explore the early settlement of East Asia by modern humans, the peopling of the Americas and the genetic make-up of ancient African populations. Research focusses on the genetic basis of human adaptation to local environments through time in these regions.

The Muzumdar Lab is interested in understanding the mechanisms by which genetic, environmental, and host factors contribute to cancer initiation, progression, and maintenance. Leveraging a combination of sophisticated genetically-engineered cell and animal models, the lab investigates the molecular basis for the tumor cell and host adaptations that drive cancer progression.

The Noonan laboratory uses a combination of computational and in vivo experimental approaches to study human-specific changes in developmental gene regulation. They use an integrated approach that synthesizes maps of human-specific accelerated evolution in noncoding DNAs, in vivo analysis of cis-regulatory elements, and functional genomic atlases of human development to reveal the genetic basis of unique human biology.

The Park Lab investigates human brain development and its related disorders through stem cell, genomics, genetics and neurobiological tools.

The Reinke lab investigates the mechanisms controlling germ cell specification in the early embryo, as well as the regulatory hierarchy controlling germline stem cells before and after differentiation into functional gametes.

The Scharfe lab develops new tools and genomic approaches for molecular screening and diagnostics and the study of disease pathogenesis.

The Smith lab studies epigenetic regulation in early embryonic development. The lab looks at how the environment can change the structure of embryos very early on, and how these changes may lead to detrimental long-term effects.

The Sozen lab studies the fundamental principles that regulate phenotypic, metabolic, and morphogenetic processes in early embryonic patterning; and, the causal mechanisms when these dynamic processes go awry.

The Sumigray studies the mammalian intestinal stem cell niche and the factors that affect stem cell niche morphogenesis and function.

The Sun laboratory uses zebrafish to study the genetics of polycystic kidney disease and other diseases caused by defects in a cell surface organelle called cilium.

Research in Wang Lab focuses on the development and application of state-of-the-art imaging-based omics approaches to understand the spatial organization of mammalian genome and transcriptome, and how they impact cellular states.

Dr. Xiao’s lab is interested in understanding how epigenetic mechanisms - such as DNA methylation and histone modifications - are involved in both mammalian development and disease.  A major focus is on how epigenetic regulators function at a basic science level with the goal of exploiting these mechanisms in the treatment of diseases such as cancer.