University of Michigan
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

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Trevor Bedford

Trevor Bedford

  • Postdoctoral Fellow

Contact information

  • University of Michigan
    2041 Kraus Natural Science Building
    830 North University
    Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1048
  • Phone: (734) 615-9805
  • Email: bedfordt@umich.edu

Mentor

Mercedes Pascual

Fields of study

Population genetics

Research interests

I'm broadly interested in the process of adaptation. I did my thesis work on the "molecular clock", looking at the tempo of protein evolution in yeast, Drosophila and mammals. I found that the pattern of protein evolution is significantly more random than the Poisson expectation, meaning that protein substitutions tend to cluster on a phylogeny. Correlations between time, rate of substitution and population size suggest that the extra randomness observed can be explained with reference to "nearly-neutral networks" of amino acid substitutions. In this framework, when a substitution occurs it influences the effects that future mutations have on the protein. This results in a change in the rate of evolution with every substitution event. I hypothesize that these hidden fluctuations are what cause the observed deviation from a "molecular clock."

Currently, I am investigating similar themes in the evolution of the influenza virus. The rich genomic and epidemiological record makes influenza particular amenable to such analysis.

Academic background

Ph.D., Harvard University, 2008

Bedford website


UM affiliation

  • Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
  • College of Literature, Science, and the Arts