Group Photo, May 2023
The Comparative Genomics and Metagenomics Lab (CGMLab) is a highly interdisciplinary computational biology group led by Dr. Jaime Huerta Cepas and based at the Centre for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology (CBGP), a joint (UPM-INIA/CSIC) research institute located at the Montegancedo International Campus in Madrid (Spain).
Although we are usually involved in several genome-related projects, we are primarily interested in exploring the diversity and biological complexity of microbial communities (microbiomes) using genomic sequencing and computational techniques. To this end, we develop computational methods and resources to characterize microbial genes, genomes, and metagenomes from a functional and phylogenetic perspective. We also study the evolution and ecological roles of novel microbial gene functions and rare organisms to understand the interactions between microbes and their environment. Most of our analyses combine evolutionary biology, ecology, comparative genomics, massive sequencing data, and high-performance computing resources.
Lab culture
The lab is founded under solid principles of honest communication, science passion, work-life balance, and full support for the career development of all members in the team. This may sound hard to implement in a publish-or-perish-highly-competitive time, but we try harder.
Contact: Jaime Huerta Cepas, j.huerta@csic.es