Team
Steve Reilly
Principal Investigator
Steve is a genomicist specializing in human genetics, evolution, and gene-regulation. He is specifically interested in furthering our understanding of non-coding variation, the main cache of human genetic diversity. He develops novel computational + experimental approaches to identify and functionally characterize human variation at scale. These tools include DeepSweep: a machine learning method to identify variants under positive selection, HCR-FlowFISH: a method to directly characterize the functional targets of regulatory elements, and application of the Massively Parallel Reporter Assay (MPRA) to understand the regulatory impact of genomic variation.
Steve completed his B.S. at Carnegie Mellon University, studying recursive splicing in the laboratory of Javier Lopez. He wouldn’t be a scientist today without the generous early mentorship and support he received from Beth Jones, the Beckman Scholars Program, and the HHMI summer researchers program. Steve completed his PhD from Yale University in the Department of Genetics. He studied the evolution of regulatory elements in the developing human cortex in the lab of James Noonan. He completed his postdoctoral work in the Sabeti lab at Harvard University and The Broad Institute. His awards include an NHGRI NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99), an NHGRI Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA), the Carolyn Slayman Thesis Prize, and was a Beckman Scholar awardee. Steve is passionate about making science more inclusive and improving training for students in the genomic age. Outside the lab, you can find him biking, taking an overly scientific approach to his garden, making beer, and glass blowing.
Catherine McGuinness
Laboratory ManagerCatherine is our Laboratory Manager. After completing her bachelor’s in Physics at Smith College, she studied blood coagulation as a research technician in Dr. Kenneth Mann’s lab at the University of Vermont. Catherine then earned her master's in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry here at Yale, studying microtubule dynamics with Joe Howard. She then spent a few years as the quality assurance manager at Stony Creek Brewery, and now is returning to academia as the Reilly lab manager. Outside of the lab, Catherine enjoys crafting, spending time with her family, volunteering, and exploring New Haven.
Thanh-Thanh Nguyen
Postdoctoral ResearcherTwitter | Google Scholar | ORCID
Thanh Thanh Nguyen is a postdoctoral fellow in the Reilly and Brennand labs. She is interested in applying functional genomics to understand genetic risks underlying neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases, and the various contexts under which such risks can manifest. Thanh Thanh completed her PhD in Molecular Pharmacology at the Mayo Clinic, where she utilized a wide range of "-omic" techniques to dissect the interface between non-coding genetics and epigenetics in determining individual responses to drugs and the chemical environment. Born in Moscow, Russia and raised in Hanoi, Vietnam, she left to the U.S. to pursue further educational opportunities and intellectual freedom. Fortunate enough to have come across wise and dedicated mentors along her journey, she deeply values mentorship in academia and understands how impactful it can be.
Outside of the lab she loves cooking, baking, and spending time in nature and with family and friends. To her, every ordinary moment can turn extraordinary.
Stephen Rong
Postdoctoral ResearcherTwitter | Google Scholar | ORCID
Stephen is a postdoctoral researcher at the Reilly Lab interested in developing novel computational tools for understanding how genetic variation influences gene expression and adaptive traits in human populations. He completed his BA at Washington University majoring in math and anthropology with a minor in biology. His undergraduate thesis was on math models of the evolution of eusociality. Stephen completed his PhD from Brown University in the Center for Computational Molecular Biology in the Fairbrother Lab. He studied the population and functional genomics of splicing in human evolution and disease using massively parallel splicing assays. He was part of the Brown-MBL IGERT in Reverse Ecology and was supported by an NSF Graduate Fellowship.
Outside of the lab, he enjoys cooking, scifi-fantasy, animation, exploring new restaurants, museums, and nature.
Jared Akers
Graduate StudentJared is a PhD student who joined the Reilly Lab in August, 2022. His thesis work is on understanding how recent (0-200 KYA) selection in humans contributes to population-level variance in human molecular phenotypes, in this project he will work with Stephen and Madeline, utilizing MPRA and CRISPR-Cas systems to functionally characterize locally adaptive variation residing within non-coding elements.
Jared received his B.S. in Genetics from the University of Wisconsin - Madison in 2018; while a student he performed research in Dr. Qiang Chang’s Lab, and investigated the gene regulatory mechanisms underpinning folding of the developing human neocortex. Prior to transferring to UW-Madison he studied at Nicolet Area Technical College, a small community college close to his former home in Northern Wisconsin. After college graduation, Jared worked as a Laboratory Technician in Dr. Kamena Kostova’s Laboratory at the Carnegie Institution’s Department of Embryology, where he studied ribosome biogenesis.
In his free time, Jared enjoys tango, weight lifting, and almost anything outdoors.
Ovaun Latouche
Graduate StudentOvaun is a Ph.D. student in the Genetics Department who joined the lab in March 2023. He is co-mentored with Kristen Brennand. He is interested in understanding the genetic architecture of neurodegenerative diseases.
Ovaun completed a bachelor's in sociology from Stony Brook University, and then a master’s in biology from NYU in 2020. At NYU, he worked in the laboratory of Dr. Hernando-Monge, where he developed a novel piggyBac genome editing system to introduce point mutations in melanoma in vitro models. He then worked as a Research Associate in the laboratories of Panos Roussos and Kristen Brennand at Mount Sinai, where he utilized pooled CRISPR screens and hiPSC-derived stem cells to study gene regulation in neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders.
Outside of the lab, he enjoys board games and prides himself on being able to play any sport that has a ball.
Mackenzie Noon
Graduate StudentMackenzie Noon grew up in Redlands, California. He split his undergraduate degree across two schools, University of California, Davis, and University of California, Berkeley, attending each for two years. At Davis, he characterized a replication-stress induced nucleophagy pathway in the lab of Professor Ken Kaplan. At Berkeley, he joined the lab of Professor Lin He, and investigated the prevalence and function of retrotransposon-derived protein isoforms in preimplantation mouse development. After receiving his degree from Berkeley, he did a post-baccalaureate fellowship with Prof. Andrew Xiao at Yale. Here, he investigated the function of Alkbh1 in mouse development and sex determination. Mackenzie hopes to contribute to the understanding of mammalian development. In the Reilly lab, he hopes to disentangle the contributions of cis-regulatory sequences to early mammalian development. Outside of the lab, Mackenzie enjoys cycling and board games.
Maggie Prentice
Post-graduate ResearcherMaggie is a Postgraduate Associate in the Reilly lab. She joined the Lab after completing her BA in Biological Sciences at Smith College in 2022. During her time at
Smith, her work under Dr. Chris White-Ziegler focused on phenotypic effects of sRNA regulation in E.coli. In academic and industrial settings, Maggie has also studied the impacts of novel decontamination technologies on bacteria and fungi. In the Reilly Lab Maggie’s work uses MPRA to investigate how evolutionary constraints in primates and mammals impacts human genetics. Outside of the lab, Maggie enjoys playing in a local kickball league, collaging, and searching for the perfect cup of coffee.
Elise Root
Post-graduate ResearcherElise is a postgraduate associate in the Reilly lab from Cranbury, New Jersey. She is joining the lab after graduating from Williams College with a degree in biology and math. At Williams, she worked on a thesis with Professor David Loehlin that investigated how different regulatory elements and distances in the genome could influence the gene expression of tandem duplicate Adh genes in fruit flies. In the Reilly lab, she is excited to learn more about computational techniques and genomics. Outside the lab, she enjoys knitting, reading, volunteering, and spending time with her family and friends.
Aviv Pinker
Undergraduate Researcher
Aviv is an undergraduate researcher from Seattle, WA. He is majoring in MCDB, and hopes to fuse his interests in genetics and human biology with his passion for ecology. He has previously conducted summer research in medical genetics at the University of Washington. In the Reilly Lab, Aviv is exploring the evolution of the Homo sapiens, Denisovan, and Neanderthal lineages by analyzing variants in the 3’ UTR of genes. On campus, he sings a cappella with Mixed Company, shreds with the Yale Alpine Ski Team, and helps organize intramural sports. Aviv loves exploring the mountains, fishing, playing soccer, cooking, and scuba diving.
Madeline Pitre
Undergraduate ResearcherMadeline is a first-year undergraduate researcher at the Reilly Lab from Biloxi, Mississippi. At Yale, she currently plans on completing a Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry. She hopes to later attend graduate school to study genetics and pursue a career in biomedical research. In the lab, Madeline is working to characterize an adaptive variant in the 3’UTR region of the LEPR gene that appears to be involved with various evolutionary-linked traits, such as cold adaptation, obesity, and immunological functions. Outside of the lab, Madeline spends time going on runs around New Haven with the Club Running Team, volunteering at the Yale Community Kitchen, practicing piano with the Yale Jazz Collective, and working at the Chemistry Teaching Laboratories. She also enjoys reading, marathoning movies with friends, collecting vinyl, and spending way too much time making Spotify playlists.
Bahar Bouzarjomehri
Undergraduate Researcher
Bahar is a third-year undergraduate researcher from Olympia, Washington. At Yale, she studies Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology and hopes to later attend medical school. Under the supervision of Thanh Thanh, Bahar is co-mentored by the Brennand and Reilly labs where she studies non-coding genetic variants associated with neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases. Outside of the lab, Bahar is the co-director of the Yale Undergraduate Prison Project and enjoys volunteering at the Yale New Haven Hospital and HAVEN Free Clinic. She spends her free time rock climbing, baking, and sleeping.
Manuel Perez
Undergraduate ResearcherManuel is an undergraduate researcher at the Reilly Lab hailing from New York City. At Yale, Manuel studies Neuroscience and hopes to contribute to the medical field through research and practicing medicine in underserved communities. In the lab, Manuel is currently working to characterize the function of a positively selected non-coding variant associated with the innate immune response and viral resistance, including SARS-CoV-2. Manuel contributes to the Yale Education Tutoring Initiative, the Dominican Student Association, Mourning Our Losses, and The Co-op. Outside of the lab, Manuel loves to thrift, curate playlists, take care of his plants, sightsee and go on walks.
Rohit Ghosh
Post-graduate ResearcherRohit is a Postgraduate Associate in the Reilly Lab who joined in August 2023. He is interested in developing computational tools to better our understanding of the human genome and its role in disease and evolution. Originally from Sunnyvale, CA, Rohit started his career in research by working in the clinical chemistry and toxicology laboratories at San Francisco General Hospital/UCSF under Dr. Alan Wu in high school. He then attended UCLA and graduated with degrees in Computational and Systems Biology and Computer Science. While at UCLA, he studied muscle development in C. elegans under Dr. Pavak Shah and created a data pipeline to genotype cancer cells in the lab of Dr. Paul Boutros. Outside of research, Rohit enjoys hiking and baking, and will hopefully one day work up the motivation to actually go to the gym instead of just talking about it.
Previous Lab Members
Undergraduates + High School Students
Nico Santiago (2016-2018) -> U. Penn undergrad
Natalia Fuentes (2019-> .) - Rocky Mountain Wildlife Alliance
Debbie Lilly (2023) -> Yale Undergraduate
Research Associates
Alan Gutierrez (2019-2021) -> Yale Medical School
Graduate Students
Joe Vitti (2016-2020 ) -> Seven Bridges
James Xue (2016->2023) -> Gene-Wei Li Lab @ MIT Postdoc
Sager Gosai (2017-> .) - Harvard Ph.D. Candidate
Collaborators
Finucane Lab
Sabeti Lab
Tewhey Lab
Tucci Lab
Funding
NIH/NHGRI Pathway to Independence, K99/R00 (HG010669)
Ruth L. Kirschstein Postdoctoral Individual National Research Service Award (HG009226)
You?
We’re always looking for inquisitive, creative, and passionate researchers (post-docs, graduate students, RAs, undergrads) to join our team. Diversity of backgrounds (scientific, academic, personal, etc), are always valued in our collaborative team.