Meet the Team: Daniel

Hi, I’m Daniel!

I’m Daniel and I’m a bioinformatician working with the analysis team in Generation Scotland. My job involves processing the large biological datasets from Generation Scotland volunteers, and linking them to our questionnaire and health information. I’m also involved in the preparation of datasets for researchers within the University and external collaborators. A typical day would involve writing code to generate figures and tables from our data, and, with the other members of the analysis team, putting our heads together to troubleshoot and identify the best way to analyse data and present results.

I have a PhD in in psychiatric genetics from the University of Edinburgh, where I investigated the effects of a chromosomal abnormality linked to severe mental illness in a large Scottish family. This project involved a mixture of lab work and computational analysis of datasets generated from biological samples from patients. I really enjoyed the problem-solving aspect of the computational side of the project, which is why I decided to pursue a career in biological data analysis.

After my PhD, I joined an Edinburgh-based company, where I was involved in the analysis of various genomic datasets for commercial and academic clients. I then returned to the University of Edinburgh to investigate genetic and environmental predictors of age-related traits with Riccardo Marioni, where I was given the chance to work with Generation Scotland’s comprehensive biological datasets. I officially joined the Generation Scotland team in April 2021. I’m really excited to come in at a time where the study has seen so much growth, with lots of data coming in from new and existing volunteers!

Outside of work I enjoy cooking, staying active, and visiting new places (with and without my labrador, Teddy). While the pandemic has put a pin in my recent travel plans, I hope to pick them up again once it is safe to do so!