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Genetic Heritage Group

The Genetic Heritage Group is a collaborative research group dedicated to studying human heritage using genomics. For all projects in the lab, we conduct field expeditions and analyze our own data both independently and in collaboration with participation from local researchers. Using a loose definition of heritage as the attributes signifying a human population or a society that are inherited from previous generations, we categorize human heritage under four broad umbrellas: genomic, microbial, cultural, and natural.

Heritage Research Areas

We define genomic heritage as attributes or features in the human genome - our DNA that we have inherited from our ancestors - that are informative to understand human population histories, migrations, interactions, and adaptations to local environments. We are particularly interested in population histories of traditional populations of Himalaya and how they have adapted to various local selection pressures. We have several collaborative projects that are supported by generous financial investments from NYUAD.

Current Research Project

  • Himalayan Genetics
    Understanding human population histories from 1000 Himalayan individuals from diverse ethnic populations in Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Tibet

We define microbial heritage as attributes or features of the microbes - a wide variety of tiny creatures such as archaea, bacteria, eukaryotes, fungi, and viruses - that inhabit the human body. We are particularly interested in the gut microbiomes of traditional populations, how they are influenced by urbanization, and whether urbanization associated changes in the gut microbiota affects human health. We have several outstanding projects investigating traditional human gut microbiomes, that are supported by grants from The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Current Research Project

  • Himalayan Microbiomes
    Understanding the factors influencing the microbial diversity in culturally distinct human populations in Nepal and India.

Our definition of “cultural heritage” may differ from traditional application of this term. We define cultural heritage as genomic or microbial attributes or features of plants and animals that are associated with human culture. For example, gut microbiomes of domesticated animals, genomes of medicinal plants, and microbes associated with fermentation. We are investigating the dog and cat gut microbiomes via a public-private partnership with NomNom, an emerging direct-to-consumer pet health company. We are particularly excited by the microbiology of fermented foods! We are starting  several outstanding projects characterizing traditional fermented foods that are supported by grants from The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

In the traditional sense, natural heritage is a part of human culture. But we distinguish the two because we view natural heritage as genomes and microbiomes of all things not curated by humans; for example, genomes and microbiomes of rare and near-extinct organisms or environments. We are looking for collaborations to develop projects in this area.

The various planned and ongoing research projects in the Genetic Heritage Group are conducted in collaboration with Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology, Assam India (IASST), National Human Genome Research Institute, Maryland USA (NHGRI),  Penn State University, Pennsylvania USA, Stanford University, California USA, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur Nepal (TU), and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC).