Azwad Iqbal 🧬

Azwad Iqbal

Population Geneticist & Evolutionary Biologist

Professional Summary

PhD candidate at Cornell studying rapid evolution and the conservation of wild species through population genomics, bioinformatics, and fieldwork.
Download CV

Education

PhD in Natural Resources and the Environment

Cornell University

BA in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Princeton University

Interests

Population & conservation genomics Rapid evolution & local adaptation Invasive species Molecular ecology
About

I am a broadly trained population geneticist and evolutionary biologist with a background in molecular ecology. I’ve worked with large mammalian herbivores in African savannas, yellow-fever mosquitoes, and am currently working with American shad (Alosa sapidissima) at Cornell University.

I’m passionate about using genomics for conservation and have collaborated with stakeholders to guide my research.

Outside of research, I am a competitive powerlifter and I enjoy playing video games, listening to music (hip hop, indie, electronic), and producing mixes for bhangra teams.

Featured Publications
Genomics

A complete assembly and annotation of the American shad genome yields insights into the origins of diadromy

A chromosome-level assembly and annotation of the American shad (*Alosa sapidissima*) genome, with insights into the evolutionary origins of diadromy.

jonathan-p.-velotta
•
Read more
Publications
Jonathan P. Velotta
Equal contribution
, Azwad Iqbal
Equal contribution
, Emma S. Glenn, Ryan P. Franckowiak, Giulio Formenti, Jacquelyn Mountcastle, Jennifer Balacco, Alan Tracey, Ying Sims, Kerstin Howe, Olivier Fedrigo, Erich D. Jarvis, Nina Overgaard Therkildsen (2024). A complete assembly and annotation of the American shad genome yields insights into the origins of diadromy. Genome Biol. Evol..
Pavel V. Dimens, Ryan P. Franckowiak, Azwad Iqbal, Jennifer K. Grenier, Paul R. Munn, Nina Overgaard Therkildsen (2024). Harpy: A pipeline for processing haplotagging linked-read data. Bioinform. Adv..
Zhilei Zhao, Jessica L. Zung, Annika Hinze, Alexis L. Kriete, Azwad Iqbal, Meg A. Younger, Benjamin J. Matthews, Dorit Merhof, Stephan Thiberge, Rickard Ignell, Martin Strauch, Carolyn S. McBride (2022). Mosquito brains encode unique features of human odour to drive host seeking. Nature.
Johan Pansu, Matthew C. Hutchinson, T. Michael Anderson, Mariska te Beest, Colleen M. Begg, Keith S. Begg, Aurélie Bonin, Lackson Chama, Simon Chamaillé-Jammes, Eric Coissac, Joris P. G. M. Cromsigt, Margaret Y. Demmel, Jason E. Donaldson, Jennifer A. Guyton, Christina B. Hansen, Chimuti I. Imakando, Azwad Iqbal, Daston F. Kalima, Graham I. H. Kerley, Robert M. Pringle (2022). The generality of cryptic dietary niche differences in diverse large-herbivore assemblages. PNAS.
Research Projects

Recent and ongoing research projects.

Contact
Ready to collaborate or have questions? Mail me