Detecting and investigating signatures of natural selection driven by epidemics of deadly infectious diseases

The aim of my project is to develop methods to detect evidence of selection favoring disease-protecting genetic variants and to use these methods to investigate if such selection has acted during recent epidemics of diseases like plague and Ebola. The main purpose is to gain insights into the role of epidemics in evolution. However, the project may also give insights into how the diseases can be prevented in the future. The grant will allow me to hire 2 postdocs and to generate some data.