The Genetics and Genomics Training Program (GGT) is designed to provide students with a broad introduction to genetics, genomics, and the problems they can be used to tackle. The program is based on faculty in the Molecular and Cellular Biology and Organismic Biology, but has wider connections to faculty in Chemistry and Physics who also investigate biological questions. Graduate students join the program by applying for admission to Molecular and Cellular Biology, or Organismic and Evolutionary Biology.

Who are we?

Under the umbrella of common interest in genetics and genomics, we span a wide range of interests. One group studies theoretical, comparative, and experimental evolution, with interests ranging from understanding imprinting as the conflict between parental genes; reconstructing the history of floral evolution; the structure and behavior of microbial communities; and speciation in the laboratory. Other groups study development with research on topics as diverse as reconstructing the evolutionary history of development in plants and animals, understanding the mechanism of bacterial sporulation, and the early development of the mouse embryo. In neurobiology and behavior, our interests span the development of the fly brain; how smell controls the behavior of mice; and how ants and butterflies control each others behavior and reproduction. Finally, we work on fundamental aspects of genetics and genomics including chromosome behavior in meiosis, mathematical population biology, and making sense of the fly genome. We exchange ideas in a variety of formats including internal and external seminar series, journal clubs, and random collisions in hallways.

What draws us together?

The program is held together by a common interest in using genetics and genomics as tools to find broad principles that can explain the structure, function, and evolution of biology at the molecular, cellular, and organismal level. This common goal transcends the traditional boundaries that separate biology from chemistry, physics, computer science, and mathematics, as well as the division between molecular and organismal biology. We believe that the future of biology belongs to students who transcend departmental boundaries and are committed to integrating experiment, computation, and theory as complementary strategies to unlock Nature’s secrets.