Eugene Koonin
Encyclopedia
Eugene V. Koonin is a Senior Investigator at the National Center for Biotechnology Information
, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health
, Bethesda, MD, USA . He is a recognised expert in the field of evolutionary and computational biology
.
Koonin gained a Master of Science
in 1978 and a PhD
in 1983 in Molecular Biology
from Department of Biology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia. He conducted research in Computational Biology at the Institute of Poliomyelitis
and Institute of Microbiology, Moscow (Russia) in 1985-1991. He has worked at the NCBI
since 1991 and is Editor of Genome Analysis section in Trends in Genetics. Koonin has an Erdős number
of 2.
Principal research goals:
National Center for Biotechnology Information
The National Center for Biotechnology Information is part of the United States National Library of Medicine , a branch of the National Institutes of Health. The NCBI is located in Bethesda, Maryland and was founded in 1988 through legislation sponsored by Senator Claude Pepper...
, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health
National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
, Bethesda, MD, USA . He is a recognised expert in the field of evolutionary and computational biology
Computational biology
Computational biology involves the development and application of data-analytical and theoretical methods, mathematical modeling and computational simulation techniques to the study of biological, behavioral, and social systems...
.
Koonin gained a Master of Science
Master of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...
in 1978 and a PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in 1983 in Molecular Biology
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...
from Department of Biology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia. He conducted research in Computational Biology at the Institute of Poliomyelitis
Poliomyelitis
Poliomyelitis, often called polio or infantile paralysis, is an acute viral infectious disease spread from person to person, primarily via the fecal-oral route...
and Institute of Microbiology, Moscow (Russia) in 1985-1991. He has worked at the NCBI
National Center for Biotechnology Information
The National Center for Biotechnology Information is part of the United States National Library of Medicine , a branch of the National Institutes of Health. The NCBI is located in Bethesda, Maryland and was founded in 1988 through legislation sponsored by Senator Claude Pepper...
since 1991 and is Editor of Genome Analysis section in Trends in Genetics. Koonin has an Erdős number
Erdos number
The Erdős number describes the "collaborative distance" between a person and mathematician Paul Erdős, as measured by authorship of mathematical papers.The same principle has been proposed for other eminent persons in other fields.- Overview :...
of 2.
Principal research goals:
- Comparative analysis of sequenced genomes and automatic methods for genome-scale annotation of gene functions.
- Application of comparative genomicsGenomicsGenomics is a discipline in genetics concerning the study of the genomes of organisms. The field includes intensive efforts to determine the entire DNA sequence of organisms and fine-scale genetic mapping efforts. The field also includes studies of intragenomic phenomena such as heterosis,...
for phylogenetic analysis, reconstruction of ancestral life forms and building large-scale evolutionary scenarios. - Mathematical modeling of genome evolution.
- Computational study of the major transitions in the evolution of life, such as the origin of eukaryoteEukaryoteA eukaryote is an organism whose cells contain complex structures enclosed within membranes. Eukaryotes may more formally be referred to as the taxon Eukarya or Eukaryota. The defining membrane-bound structure that sets eukaryotic cells apart from prokaryotic cells is the nucleus, or nuclear...
s. - Evolution of eukaryotic signaling and developmental pathways from the comparative-genomic perspective.
- Testing fundamental predictions of the theory of evolutionEvolutionEvolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
using genome-wide sequence comparison.
Writings
- Koonin, E. V. 2011. The Logic of Chance: The Nature and Origin of Biological Evolution. FT Press.