Welcome to our lab

Our DNA doesn’t change, but the effect it has on us does. At the Dynamic Genetics Lab, we’re fascinated by the dynamic relationship between genotype and phenotype, and we love coming up with new ways to trace the complex patterns of nature and nurture through time and space.

About us

Genetic variation affects all complex human traits and disorders. However, which genetic variants affect us and how they have their effects depends on the environmental and developmental context. For example, some genetic differences may be apparent only in childhood, or only in the centre of large cities.

The Dynamic Genetics Lab, led by Dr Claire Haworth and Dr Oliver Davis, and part of the MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, explores how genetic and environmental influences change through time, through space, and in response to intervention.

Research interests

Time Series Analysis

Even though our DNA sequence remains constant throughout our life, the relationship between our DNA and our personal characteristics (our phenotype) can change.

Our longitudinal research in cohorts such as the Twins Early Development Study (TEDS) and Children of the 90s (ALSPAC) is exploring this dynamic relationship from year to year and moment to moment.

Positive Genetics

Research in psychiatry and psychology has revolutionized the way we define and treat mental illness, yet we know very little about the causes and correlates of mental health and wellbeing.

Our positive genetics research focuses on the genetic and environmental causes of individual differences in positive outcomes, from happiness and life satisfaction through gratitude, self-determination and hope.

Visual Genomics

Human genetic and environmental epidemiology, like the other areas of modern biomedical science, is generating ever larger and more complex datasets. Data visualisation can help us to transform the numbers into valuable information in ways that directly complement statistical analysis.

Our visual genomics research aims to make working with and reasoning about these datasets as easy and enjoyable as possible.

Spatial Analysis

Both nature and nurture affect all complex human characteristics. Each trait is a balance of genetic and environmental influences. But what if that balance depends on where we grow up?

Our spatial research develops new methods for mapping the world’s genetic and environmental hotspots.

Genetics and Intervention

What are the implications of finding genetic influence for the design of intervention and prevention programs?

For complex traits heritability does not mean immutability, and the most significant implications for intervention will come when we move from observational genetics to investigating dynamic genetics.

Big Data

The collection of DNA sequence information is fast outpacing geneticists’ ability to collect detailed phenotype data.

We are developing ways of combining genetic data with social media and other forms of big data that match our DNA knowledge in their scale and resolution.

Projects

Here are some of our past and current projects. As we complete each project you will be able to find details of publications in the project description, in our publications feed, and on the University staff pages of lab members.

TWIST TWIST - Genetic and environmental influences are dynamic. Our spACE project has shown how the importance of genes and environments can vary depending on where we grow up, and our longitudinal analyses have shown that for several traits heritability tends to increase with age. We wanted to take this a step further by exploring what happens to …

Continue reading "TWIST"

EMBERS EMBERS - The rapid evolution of genotyping and sequencing technologies means that genetic variation data are becoming readily available in the large populations necessary for research into the aetiology of complex traits and disorders. Now, rather than being limited by genotyping, we are starting to be restricted by the availability of phenotypic and environmental information. To understand the dynamics of genetic influences across development and in different contexts, we must develop new approaches that will complement traditional questionnaires and clinical data to give us affordable, repeatable and detailed assessments on a scale to match our vast repositories of genetic data.
spACE spACE - Twin studies allow us to estimate the relative contributions of nature and nurture to human phenotypes by comparing the resemblance of identical and fraternal twins. Variation in complex traits is a balance of genetic and environmental influences; these influences are typically estimated at a population level. But what if the balance of nature and nurture varies depending on where we grow up? We developed the spACE approach to analyse and map genetic and environmental hotspots using data from large twin cohorts.

News

Posted on

spACE

Twin studies allow us to estimate the relative contributions of nature and nurture to human phenotypes by comparing the resemblance of identical and fraternal twins. Variation in complex traits is a balance of genetic and environmental influences; these influences are typically estimated at a population level. But what if the balance of nature and nurture …

Continue reading “spACE”

Posted on

EMBERS

The rapid evolution of genotyping and sequencing technologies means that genetic variation data are becoming readily available in the large populations necessary for research into the aetiology of complex traits and disorders. Now, rather than being limited by genotyping, we are starting to be restricted by the availability of phenotypic and environmental information. To understand …

Continue reading “EMBERS”

Posted on

TWIST

Genetic and environmental influences are dynamic. Our spACE project has shown how the importance of genes and environments can vary depending on where we grow up, and our longitudinal analyses have shown that for several traits heritability tends to increase with age. We wanted to take this a step further by exploring what happens to …

Continue reading “TWIST”

Joining the lab

We are very happy to offer advice and support for postdoctoral fellowship applications in any of our areas of interest. Suitable sources of funding include the Sir Henry Wellcome Fellowships from the Wellcome Trust, MRC, ESRC, BBSRC or EPSRC postdoctoral fellowships, British Academy postdoctoral research fellowships, or European Research Council Marie Curie Fellowships.

We offer studentships for several PhD programmes at Bristol, including the MRC programme in Integrative Epidemiology, the Wellcome Trust programme in Molecular, Genetic and Lifecourse Epidemiology, and studentships funded through the ESRC South West Doctoral Training Centre and the BBSRC South West Bioscience (SWBio) Doctoral Training Partnership. If you are interested in applying for a PhD in any of our areas of interest, or if you’re an undergraduate student looking for research experience in any of these areas, please get in touch.

Postdoctoral research associate and postgraduate research assistant positions will appear in our jobs feed.