NHGRI Division of Intramural Research Seminar Series
Event Details
The 2024-25 Division of Intramural Research (DIR) sponsors a monthly series of talks by intramural and special guest speakers celebrating genetics and genomics research. Speakers are selected by NHGRI intramural faculty and trainees and cover research topics of interest to a wide audience.
All seminars are free and open to the public. Seminar titles and other details are updated as information becomes available.
For more information, please contact Dr. Daphne Bell at belldaph@mail.nih.gov
All times are in EDT.
Hybrid: In-Person and Zoom Webinar (Requires Registration)
Video Recordings
YouTube Playlist: Videos from 2024-25 DIR Seminar Series
Upcoming Seminars
Genomics of Host-Microbiome Interactions
November 14, 2024, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Ran Blekhman, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Medicine, University of Chicago
Ran Blekhman, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Chicago, specializes in the intersection of human genomics and microbiome research. His research involves leveraging genomic and analytical techniques to unravel host-microbiome interactions in health and disease. The Blekhman Lab studies human genomic factors that control and interact with the microbiome. They utilize high-throughput genomics technologies and employ computational, statistical, machine learning, and population genetic analytical approaches, with the goal of understanding how to interact with the microbial communities, how host-microbe interactions affect human disease, and how the symbiosis between us and our microbiome evolved.
Hosts: Julie Segre and Zeyang Shen
December 12, 2024, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Sarah Tishkoff, Ph.D.
David and Lyn Silfen University Professor in Genetics and Biology
University of Pennsylvania
Host: Chris Gunter
Follow @SarahTishkoff on XJanuary 23, 2025, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Giles Yeo, Ph.D.
Professor of Molecular Neuroendocrinology
University of Cambridge
Host: Susan Persky
Follow @GilesYeo on XFebruary 13, 2025, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Justin Cotney, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Genomic Sciences
Center for Craniofacial Innovation
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Host: Neil Hanchard
Follow @justincotney on XMarch 6, 2025, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Sir Richard Roberts, Ph.D.
Chief Scientific Officer
New England Biolabs
Host: Valer Gotea
April 3, 2025, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Michael Snyder, Ph.D.
Stanford W. Ascherman Professor in Genetics
Stanford Medicine
Host: Elaine Ostrander
Follow @snydershot on XMay 8, 2025, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Katie Pollard, Ph.D.
Director, Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology
Professor, University of California, San Francisco
Host: Shawn Burgess
June 5, 2025, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Lea Davis, Ph.D.
Professor, Medicine
Professor, Psychiatry
Professor, Genetics and Genomic Sciences
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Host: Joshua Denny and Slavena Goleva
Past Seminars
Precision Medicine for the Heart: pioneering technologies for diagnosing, treating and curing dilated cardiomyopathy
October 24, 2024, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET
Lars Steinmetz, Ph.D.
Chair, Department of Genetics, and
Dieter Schwarz Foundation Endowed Professor of Genetics
Stanford University
The Steinmetz lab develops genomic technologies to study the genetic basis of complex phenotypes, the mechanisms of gene regulation, and the molecular systems underpinning disease. We’re leveraging biological insights across scales and organisms to predict, diagnose, treat and ultimately prevent disease.
While technological advances have enabled the association of thousands of genetic variants to complex traits of health and disease, we lack a comprehensive understanding of how genetic variation governs phenotypic diversity and disease. This is largely due to the challenge of discovering the mechanisms through which genetic variation shape cellular phenotypes, as well as the complex interplay between variants and the impact of environmental factors. The Steinmetz Lab's research is directed at developing genomics technologies and approaches to study the molecular processes that underlie complex genetic traits, gene regulation, and inherited diseases. Their approach has been to drive technology development together with biological application, in which they work across the broad axis of fundamental to translational research.
Hosts: Meru Sadhu
The importance of environmental and ancestral context in genetic risk estimation for diverse and admixed populations
September 5, 2024, 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Genevieve Wojcik, Ph.D., MHS
Assistant Professor
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Genevieve Wojcik, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor, Department of Epidemiology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore MD. As a statistical geneticist and genetic epidemiologist, Dr. Wojcik’s research focuses on method development for diverse populations, specifically in admixed populations. Many of her efforts focus on improving statistical methods for complex trait mapping and polygenic risk scores for these populations to address existing health inequities and ensure downstream translation for all.
The second arm of Dr. Wojcik’s research program focuses on the genetic susceptibility to infectious disease and vaccine response, with an eye towards host-pathogen co-evolution.
Dr. Wojcik is currently a member of numerous NIH consortia, including the Population Architecture using Genomics and Epidemiology (PAGE) Study, the Genome Sequencing Program (GSP), the Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen), and the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program, as well as several international collaborations.
Hosts: Daphne Bell, Charles Venditti and Carol Van Ryzin
Last updated: November 6, 2024