About Korf Lab

Contact

mdporter@ucdavis.edu

Matthew Porter

Genetics Graduate Student

Biography

In 2010, I earned a B.S. cum laude in "Chemistry with a Focus in Biochemistry" from the University of Florida. I really enjoyed my science classes and my undergraduate research experience, and having also held on to a passion for programming as a hobby since middle school, I decided to apply immediately to the Genetics Graduate Group at UC Davis with the intention of performing research in the area of bioinformatics/genomics. I am presently a 3rd year graduate student shared between the labs of Luca Comai and Ian Korf, developing applied bioinformatics programs to answer questions about Arabidopsis suecica and how it rapidly adapted to its recently acquired allopolyploidy status (~50 kYa).

Research interests

I have developed an easy-to-use Hidden Markov Model-based copy number variant identifier known as DupHMM. Using the results from DupHMM runs on A. suecica, as well as differential expression analyses between various RNA-Seq data sets, I have discovered interesting CNV and gene expression trends within A. suecica* that likely arose immediately after allopolyploidization as a result of selective pressures (results pending publication). The results from this project may allow me to press forward and examine CNV changes within a more economically significant allopolyploid: sugarcane.

I have also been collaborating with the lab of Satya Dandekar, seeking to understand how SIV infection influences gene and miRNA expression changes within gastrointestinal tissues.

I have many research interests. If there is a problem that pertains to human health or survival which can be tackled from a bioinformatics perspective, it will likely appeal to me.

About Korf Lab

Korflab in the news


Jan 28, 2013: A Haldane's Sieve Blog Post by Keith Bradnam that discusses the Assemblathon 2 pre-print


Nov 12, 2012: a feature on Danielle Lemay by the Calfifornia Dairy Research Foundation


Mar 23, 2011: A Nature news article about genome assembly, with an interview of Ian Korf.

Contact Us

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korflab AT ucdavis DOT edu

Contact information for specific members of our lab can be found on their personal pages.