My research addresses functional genomic, quantitative genetic and evolutionary questions, with a focus on the role of gene regulation.
I am interested in understanding the role of sex determination and hormone signaling pathways in the evolution of sex difference in expression and sex dimorphism of complex traits. My research has focused on the genetic and environmental components of variation in sex differential expression, in the context of these specific regulatory pathways.
Recent research in my lab has focused on regulatory variation within species, finding that regulatory variation of thousands of sex differentially expressed genes show sex limited cis or trans variation.
Research in our lab is focused on understanding the role of sex differences in gene regulation in evolution, from environmental and genetic variability within populations to divergence between species. We study how sex differences in regulation contribute to variability in a variety of phenotypes which are sexually dimorphic: most recently stress, immunity and defense.
We are also interested in the broader role of sex differences in regulation in resolving sexual conflict, in the structure of variability within gene networks and in shaping the phenotypic effects of genetic variants in males and females.
