Guggenheim winner maps genetic past

Huelsenbeck

ohn Huelsenbeck, associate professor of biology, has been named a 2002 Guggenheim Fellow for his work deciphering species' genealogies based on their genetic information. Guggenheim fellows are appointed on the basis of unusually distinguished achievement in the past and exceptional promise for future accomplishments. Huelsenbeck is one of 184 artists, scholars and scientists selected from over 2,800 applicants.

"I feel very honored to be chosen as a recipient of a Guggenheim fellowship and plan to use the support for research and writing," says Huelsenbeck.

Huelsenbeck works in phylogenetics, the study of relationships between different species based on their genetic makeup. Using powerful computers and new mathematical techniques that he devised, Huelsenbeck can determine how far in the past a number of species branched away from one another on the evolutionary tree.

"The existence of a common history explains why we can study a disease in a mouse and learn about the disease in humans," says Huelsenbeck. "The nuts-and-bolts of organisms can be remarkably similar because of this shared history."

Huelsenbeck is currently working on a book that covers the advances in phylogenetics over the past decade, looking specifically at how genealogies can be estimated and used for practical purposes, such as tracing the spread of an infectious disease. It will also cover some of the more esoteric purposes behind the study of molecular evolution and evolutionary biology.

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