Leach Laboratory

We are interested in the development of computational tools to facilitate data interpretation and scientific discovery for biologists and clinicians. Researchers now have access to multiple types of genomic-scale data but are left with the daunting challenge of interpreting within and between data sets. This challenge is one shared globally as a number of large-scale projects have been funded to create comprehensive molecular characterizations of processes or diseases of interest, but the data remains largely unexplored for lack of effective analysis approaches. The pervading theme in our work is the integration of heterogeneous data sources, commonly referred to as data fusion, with applications to characterizing genes and their inter-relationships.

Our work also emphasizes graphical network representations of gene interactions and the use of those networks for interpreting and focusing hypothesis generation and validation of datasets contributed by our collaborators. We are especially interested in applications which truly invoke the systems biology mandate of feedback and iteration between data generation and modelling, thereby encouraging strong interplay between researchers with biological/clinical backgrounds and those with a computational background.

Lab Resources and Services

We have access to the resources of the Integrated Center for Genes, Environment and Health, including a high performance computer cluster, Applied Biosystems SOLiD and 454 next-generation sequencers, an Applied Biosystems 96-capillary 3730XL DNA analyzer, Nimblegen and Agilent microarray scanners, an Illumina's BeadXpress for Multiplex SNP Genotyping, and Qiagen BioRobots for liquid handling. Learn more.

Current Projects

• Relevant Subgraph Extraction
• Multi-loci Prioritization
• Heterogenous Data Integration
• Other Collaborative Projects