Welcome to the McVicker Laboratory
The McVicker Laboratory studies how human genetic variation affects chromatin state and gene regulation. Our vision is to understand the regulatory function of every non-coding genetic variant in every cell type. This knowledge would reveal biological mechanisms underlying disease and support development of personalized therapies to treat disease.
To achieve this vision we use a combination of natural genetic variation, genome perturbations, and computational analysis.
Natural Genetic Variation. We use germline genetic variation as well as somatic mutations to identify genetic variants associated with changes in chromatin and gene expression. To identify these associations, we map molecular quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and analyze allele specific expression.
Genome Perturbations. We use CRISPR technologies and reporter assays to perturb the genome and determine how sequences affect chromatin and gene expression.
Computational Analysis. We are developing machine learning methods to predict which variants affect chromatin and gene expression. We also utilize statistical methods to analyze genomic datasets.