Genetic variation in the human genome controls a compendium of cellular and physiological components that make up human biology. The Ray Lab is interested in better understanding how genetic variation tunes our immune system and how this can put individuals at risk for autoimmune diseases, which is a vital step in developing more effective therapeutics with fewer side effects.
Because most genetic risk for autoimmune diseases occurs in non-coding regions of the genome, the Ray lab studies how non-coding genetic variants modulate cis-regulatory regions and alter immune cell activities that lead to autoimmune disease susceptibility. We prioritize likely disease-causal variants and cis-regulatory regions, and, in human and mouse systems, identify variant target genes and pathways and define their functional effects on immune cells.
These studies will inform efforts for personalized therapies and disease prevention.


John Ray, PhD

Lab Members

Rama Dajani

Maxwell Dippel, MS

Alex Ho, PhD

Hannah Kalinoski, PhD

Lucy Li

Meghan McQuade

LeAnn Nguyen, PhD

Amelia Querbach

Stephanie Ryder
Research Projects

Defining variants that act collectively to promote disease

Mapping cis-regulatory regions that control immune cell function genome-wide
