Current research projects
Fig from Taylor and Lawson, 2024
Complex traits are shaped by many loci of small effect, yet their genetic architectures vary widely across human populations due to the joint action of selection, drift, and demographic history. Despite this, most models rely on equilibrium assumptions and ancestry-restricted data, leaving population differences in polygenic architecture and GWAS portability poorly explained. We integrate population genetic theory with forward-time simulations to disentangle mutation–selection–drift dynamics underlying these patterns.
Biological invasions offer a powerful opportunity to study how ecological context and species traits shape population spread, yet predicting invasion success remains challenging at broad scales. We conducted a global comparative analysis of introduced mammals to identify ecological, life-history, and demographic predictors of invasion extent, while explicitly assessing how spatial data choices (occurrence points versus range polygons) influence inference about invasion success.
Founder events and demographic bottlenecks can strongly alter genetic variation in newly established populations, yet the conditions under which genetic diversity is retained or eroded remain poorly understood. We used forward-time population genetic simulations to examine how demographic history and different modes of natural selection interact to shape genetic diversity during population establishment and expansion, identifying scenarios in which drift–selection dynamics mitigate or exacerbate genetic erosion.
Recent invasions provide a rare opportunity to study evolutionary processes in real time, yet empirical genomic data from early-stage invasions remain limited. We used population genomic data from an introduced hippopotamus population to assess how demographic history and evolutionary processes shape genetic diversity following introduction.