Genomics Lite: How does DNA mutate?
Genomics Lite is a series of public webinars, in this session we explored how DNA mutates.
In this Genomics Lite session, Sam and Jack speak to staff from the Wellcome Sanger Institute about how DNA mutates. We discussed what causes DNA to mutate, what environmental factors effect this, the different mutation rates between species as well as different types of cells and what this all means in terms of risk of disease.
About our speakers:
Dr. Sarah Lindsay, Senior Staff Scientist, Wellcome Sanger Institute
Sarah Lindsay is a Senior Staff Scientist in the Human Genetics programme, within Matt Hurles group researching the causes and consequences of mutations that occur between generations (de novo mutations) and exploring the genetic architecture of rare neurodevelopmental conditions, with the goal of improving diagnostic rates and prognoses for patients. She has a longstanding association with the Institute, having taken an unconventional route into science. After earning an undergraduate degree in Archaeology and Prehistory, she began her career as a technical assistant on the Nematode and Human Genome Projects. She then transitioned into science by completing a Master’s in Biomolecular Archaeology, followed by a PhD in Biomolecular Sciences at UMIST (now the University of Manchester), before returning to the Institute as a researcher.
Dr. Federico Abascal, Senior Staff Scientist, Wellcome Sanger Institute
Federico Abascal is a Staff Scientist in the Cancer, Ageing and Somatic Mutation department of the Wellcome Sanger Institute. His trajectory has been eclectic, but with evolutionary biology as the common denominator. Federico did his PhD in Spain, dealing with protein sequence and function analyses, aiming at the automatic annotation of proteins function. Later he did several post-docs in Madrid, in evolutionary biology and genomics, combining a bird’s eye perspective with frequent diving into the details of specific genes and proteins. Then, ten years ago he came to work at the Sanger Institute. Working with Iñigo Martincorena, they have developed a new method that allows studying somatic mutations in any tissue, opening doors to better understanding the role of mutations in disease.