Overview
Craig Lowe is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology. His research interests are in understanding how traits and characteristics of humans, and other vertebrates, are encoded in their genomes. He is especially focused on adaptations and disease susceptibilities that are unique to humans. To address these questions, Craig uses both computational and experimental approaches. Craig's recent research has been on differences in how genes are regulated between species, or between different individuals within a species, and how this causes traits to differ. All students in Craig's lab are exposed to an interdisciplinary environment; current lab members have backgrounds in mathematics, computer science, neuroscience, developmental biology, and genetics. Each year Craig teaches one or two courses on rotating topics of: ancient DNA, ethical issues in genomics, and software development for genetic analyses.
Current Appointments & Affiliations
Associate Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology
·
2026 - Present
Molecular Genetics and Microbiology,
Basic Science Departments
Assistant Professor of Cell Biology
·
2022 - Present
Cell Biology,
Basic Science Departments
Member of the Duke Cancer Institute
·
2019 - Present
Duke Cancer Institute,
Institutes and Centers
Recent Publications
Rapid and repeated evolution of myosin copy number in threespine stickleback.
Journal Article bioRxiv · December 25, 2025 Copy number variants at genomic loci evolve at a high rate, are linked to many different diseases, and play a role in adaptive evolution in humans and other organisms. Here we show that stickleback fish from freshwater environments have rapidly and repeate ... Full text Link to item CiteSegmentally duplicated regulatory elements undergo human-specific rewiring.
Journal Article bioRxiv · December 5, 2025 Gene regulatory innovation underlies many phenotypic transitions. Transposable elements are an established mechanism for creating families of cis-acting elements with shared sequence features and the potential to establish co-regulatory networks. To unders ... Full text Link to item CiteInterrogating the Regulatory Function of HAQERs during Human Cortical Development.
Journal Article bioRxiv · December 1, 2025 BACKGROUND: Sequence divergence within gene regulatory elements has been proposed to play an important role in the evolution of human-specific traits, including cortical expansion. However, the mutational processes that efficiently modify gene regulatory e ... Full text Link to item CiteRecent Grants
SCA7 neurodegeneration: Molecular epigenetic basis and therapy
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by University of California - Irvine · 2024 - 2029The Genetic Base of Bone Disease in Mycobacterial Infection
ResearchCo Investigator · Awarded by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases · 2023 - 2028Training Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology
Inst. Training Prgm or CMEMentor · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2001 - 2027View All Grants
Education, Training & Certifications
University of California, Santa Cruz ·
2010
Ph.D.