Professor & HHMI Investigator
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Seattle, Washington, United States
Dr. Harmit Singh Malik is an evolutionary biologist known for his pioneering research on genetic conflict and molecular evolution. He is currently a Professor and Associate Director in the Basic Sciences Division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, Washington, and serves as an Investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Malik earned his B.Tech. in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, in 1993, before pursuing a Ph.D. in Biology at the University of Rochester, which he completed in 1999 His doctoral research focused on the evolutionary strategies of retrotransposable elements, supervised by Thomas Eickbush. He then joined Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center as a postdoctoral fellow in Steven Henikoff’s lab.
Dr. Malik’s research investigates the evolutionary arms race between genes and proteins with opposing functions-a phenomenon known as genetic conflict. His work spans diverse organisms, including Drosophila, primates, and yeast, with a particular focus on centromeres, viruses, and selfish genetic elements. He has contributed significantly to the fields of paleovirology and centromere-drive, elucidating how genetic conflicts shape genome evolution and influence species divergence. His team has developed innovative methods to identify genes that differentiate species and has characterized the rapidly evolving interface between host proteins and viruses, revealing unexpected deviations from established models of host-pathogen interaction. These insights have implications for understanding diseases such as HIV and cancer. His lab’s research continues to shape our understanding of evolutionary biology and its relevance to human health.
Dr. Malik’s groundbreaking work has earned him numerous accolades, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (2007), the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science (2010), the Eli Lilly Prize in Microbiology (2017), the Genetics Society of America Edward Novitski Prize (2022), and election to the National Academy of Sciences (2019) and American Academy of Arts & Sciences (2022). Beyond his research, Dr. Malik is committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in science and has been active in mentoring the next generation of scientists.
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Tuesday, July 29, 2025
4:00 PM - 4:30 PM EDT