Laboratory of Evolutionary Genomics and Paleogenomics

Staff Gallery

The Laboratory was established in 2021 aimed at development and wide implementation of genomic techniques into research studies both of vertebrates and invertebrates, including fossil samples stored in the collection funds of the Zoological Institute RAS.

Our lab integrates studies at a wide range of issues including phylogeny and systematics, zoogeography, population ecology and evolutionary history of various taxonomic groups. We study genetic diversity within and between species, and how different organisms are related using whole genome DNA analyses of living and fossil specimens using material in the unique collection of the Zoological Institute.

The analyses help us understand how different species evolve and how they are affected by environmental changes, such as climate change and human activities. We are interested in the origin of species, how evolutionary pressures drive population divergence and may ultimately lead to speciation. Currently, the main research goals of the group focus on to elucidating how evolution, processes of interspecies hybridization, introgression and incomplete lineage sorting and particularly natural selection, has shaped genome and phenotype diversity in particular groups of animals.

Laboratory Structure

8 employees (5 researchers, 3 assistants).

Nataliya I. Abramson (Head of Laboratory, Leading Researcher, Candidate of Biological Sciences)

Semyon Yu. Bodrov (Junior Researcher)

Olga V. Bondareva (Junior Researcher)

Evgeny A. Genelt-Yanovskiy (Researcher, Candidate of Biological Sciences)

Ivan A. Dvoyashov (Senior Assistant)

Tatyana V. Petrova (Researcher, Candidate of Biological Sciences)

Elizaveta K. Skalon (Senior Assistant)

Lidiia S. Tursunova (Senior Assistant)