We are looking for a motivated postdoc to study the population genetics of complex traits in South Asians in the lab of Arslan Zaidi in the Department of Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development (GCD) and Institute of Health Informatics (IHI) at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, MN.
Description of the position:
Background: South Asia is culturally one of the most diverse regions of the world, with 1000s of ethno-linguistic groups. These cultural groups often coincide with genetic variation because of endogamy (preference to marry within the same group) due to cultural, geographic, religious, and social stratification. This creates founder events, which can lead to a rise in frequency of deleterious variants that are private to each group. Many ethnic groups are also consanguineous (prefer to marry close relatives). For example, in Pakistan, up to 60% of all unions take place between second cousins or closer. Both practices elevate homozygosity, increasing the burden of recessive diseases. As a result, South Asians present an underappreciated opportunity for discovering recessive variants. This potential is increasingly being realized particularly for diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease which are more prevalent among South Asians. However, the complex genetic structure of South Asians introduces challenges, both in terms of study design and methodology, that need to be understood and addressed to maximize discovery of genetic effects while minimizing false positive associations.
The project can be tailored to the specific interests of the candidate, but we are immediately interested in the following questions: (i) how does long-term endogamy and consanguinity shape the genetic architecture of rare and common diseases? (ii) how does the fine-scale structure of South Asians affect the accuracy of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and polygenic risk prediction, both within South Asians and globally? (iv) How do we adequately correct for population stratification in GWAS carried out in South Asians? We will combine analytical theory and realistic population genetic simulations to address these questions.
What we expect: A PhD is required preferably in genetics, bioinformatics, computational biology or a related field. Candidates must have an interest in population and quantitative genetics, proficiency in programming (e.g. R, Python), and strong writing and communication skills.
You can expect most (~75%) of your time conducting research (including reading and writing papers), and the remaining time (~25%) attending meetings and conferences.
What you can expect from us: We will provide rigorous training in a supportive environment and mentorship for diverse career interests. We prioritize work-life balance, and will make every effort to accommodate personal and professional needs.
About us: We are a nascent but actively growing research group with expertise in statistical genetics and an interest in combining theory and empirical data analysis to understand the genetic basis of complex traits in humans.
GCD is a vibrant, multi-disciplinary department, spanning the Medical School and College of Biological Sciences, with outstanding faculty. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to interact with many outstanding research groups across the Twin Cities Campus spanning GCD, Institute of Health Informatics, Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Anthropology. The beautiful Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul are a central hub for many biotech and bio-pharmaceutical companies and have close connections with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.
For more information about the lab, please visit us at zaidilab.org and for additional questions regarding the position, please email aazaidi@umn.edu. All interested applicants must formally apply to this posting.
