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Professor David Evans
Professor

David Evans

Email: 
Phone: 
+61 7 334 62617

Overview

Background

David Evans is an NHMRC Leadership Fellow and Professor of Statistical Genetics at the University of Queensland Institute for Molecular Bioscience. He is a winner of the NHMRC Marshall and Warren Award.

He completed his PhD in Statistical Genetics at the University of Queensland in 2003, before undertaking a four-year post-doctoral fellowship at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford where he worked as part of the The International HapMap Consortium and co-led the analysis of four diseases within the first Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium. In 2007 he moved to take up a Senior Lecturer position at the University of Bristol where he led much of the genome-wide association studies work in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). In 2013 he returned to take up a chair at the University of Queensland whilst continuing to lead an MRC Programme in statistical genetics at the University of Bristol.

His research interests include the genetic mapping of complex traits and diseases (including birthweight and other perinatal traits, osteoporosis, ankylosing spondylitis, sepsis, laterality) and the development of statistical methodologies in genetic epidemiology including approaches for gene mapping, individual risk prediction, causal modelling and dissecting the genetic architecture of complex traits. He has a particular interest in Mendelian randomization and has used it and other causal methods to investigate the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD)- the idea that adverse intrauterine exposures lead to increased risk of disease in later life.

He is Academic Codirector at the NIH funded International Workshop on Statistical Genetics Methods and is faculty on the European Programme in Educational Epidemiology.

He is Associate Editor at the International Journal of Epidemiology and Behavior Genetics journals.

Availability

Professor David Evans is:
Available for supervision
Media expert

Qualifications

  • Bachelor (Honours), The University of Queensland
  • Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland

Research interests

  • Mendelian randomization

  • Genome-wide association studies

  • Causal Modeling

  • Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD)

  • Laterality

  • Sepsis

  • Osteoporosis

  • Ankylosing Spondylitis

Works

Search Professor David Evans’s works on UQ eSpace

420 works between 1997 and 2024

1 - 20 of 420 works

2024

Journal Article

Micronutrients and Major Depression: A Mendelian Randomisation Study

Carnegie, Rebecca E., Zheng, Jie, Borges, Maria C., Jones, Hannah J., Wade, Kaitlin H., Sallis, Hannah M., Lewis, Sarah J., Evans, David M., Revez, Joana A., Evans, Jonathan and Martin, Richard M. (2024). Micronutrients and Major Depression: A Mendelian Randomisation Study. Nutrients , 16 (21) 3690, 3690. doi: 10.3390/nu16213690

Micronutrients and Major Depression: A Mendelian Randomisation Study

2024

Journal Article

DINGO: increasing the power of locus discovery in maternal and fetal genome-wide association studies of perinatal traits

Hwang, Liang-Dar, Cuellar-Partida, Gabriel, Yengo, Loic, Zeng, Jian, Toivonen, Jarkko, Arvas, Mikko, Beaumont, Robin N., Freathy, Rachel M., Moen, Gunn-Helen, Warrington, Nicole M. and Evans, David M. (2024). DINGO: increasing the power of locus discovery in maternal and fetal genome-wide association studies of perinatal traits. Nature Communications, 15 (1) 9255, 9255. doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-53495-9

DINGO: increasing the power of locus discovery in maternal and fetal genome-wide association studies of perinatal traits

2024

Journal Article

Mendelian randomization analysis of maternal coffee consumption during pregnancy on offspring neurodevelopmental difficulties in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa)

D'Urso, Shannon, Wootton, Robyn E., Ask, Helga, Brito Nunes, Caroline, Andreassen, Ole A., Hwang, Liang-Dar, Moen, Gunn-Helen, Evans, David M. and Havdahl, Alexandra (2024). Mendelian randomization analysis of maternal coffee consumption during pregnancy on offspring neurodevelopmental difficulties in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa). Psychological Medicine, 54 (12), 1-14. doi: 10.1017/S0033291724002216

Mendelian randomization analysis of maternal coffee consumption during pregnancy on offspring neurodevelopmental difficulties in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa)

2024

Journal Article

Genetic architecture reconciles linkage and association studies of complex traits

Sidorenko, Julia, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Kemper, Kathryn E., Moen, Gunn-Helen, Bhatta, Laxmi, Åsvold, Bjørn Olav, Mägi, Reedik, Estonian Biobank Research Team, Ani, Alireza, Wang, Rujia, Nolte, Ilja M., Lifelines Cohort Study, Nolte, Ilja M., Gordon, Scott, Hayward, Caroline, Campbell, Archie, Benjamin, Daniel J., Cesarini, David, Evans, David M., Goddard, Michael E., Haley, Chris S., Porteous, David, Medland, Sarah E., Martin, Nicholas G., Snieder, Harold, Metspalu, Andres, Hveem, Kristian, Brumpton, Ben, Visscher, Peter M. and Yengo, Loic (2024). Genetic architecture reconciles linkage and association studies of complex traits. Nature Genetics, 56 (11), 2352-2360. doi: 10.1038/s41588-024-01940-2

Genetic architecture reconciles linkage and association studies of complex traits

2024

Conference Publication

Common Pitfalls In Mendelian Randomization Studies And How To Avoid Them

Moen, Gunn-Helen and Evans, David M. (2024). Common Pitfalls In Mendelian Randomization Studies And How To Avoid Them. World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics WCPG 2024, Singapore, 15-19 October 2024. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2024.08.030

Common Pitfalls In Mendelian Randomization Studies And How To Avoid Them

2024

Journal Article

Understanding the genetic landscape of gestational diabetes: insights into the causes and consequences of elevated glucose levels in pregnancy

Brito Nunes, Caroline, Borges, Maria Carolina, Freathy, Rachel M., Lawlor, Deborah A., Qvigstad, Elisabeth, Evans, David M. and Moen, Gunn-Helen (2024). Understanding the genetic landscape of gestational diabetes: insights into the causes and consequences of elevated glucose levels in pregnancy. Metabolites, 14 (9) 508, 508. doi: 10.3390/metabo14090508

Understanding the genetic landscape of gestational diabetes: insights into the causes and consequences of elevated glucose levels in pregnancy

2024

Journal Article

Fludrocortisone dose–response relationship in septic shock: a randomised phase II trial

Walsham, James, Hammond, Naomi, Blumenthal, Antje, Cohen, Jeremy, Myburgh, John, Finfer, Simon, Evans, David, Peake, Sandra, Kruger, Peter, McCullough, James, Johnk, Loki, Ghelani, Dhaval, Billot, Laurent, Shan, Sana, Meyer, Jason, Rajbhandari, Dorrilyn, Koch, Carolyn, Bellomo, Rinaldo, Burrell, Louise M., Young, Morag, Roberts, Michael, Mackenzie, Lorraine, Medley, Gregory, Dalton, Joshua and Venkatesh, Balasubramanian (2024). Fludrocortisone dose–response relationship in septic shock: a randomised phase II trial. Intensive Care Medicine, 50 (12), 2050-2060. doi: 10.1007/s00134-024-07616-z

Fludrocortisone dose–response relationship in septic shock: a randomised phase II trial

2024

Journal Article

Serum proteomic profiling of physical activity reveals CD300LG as a novel exerkine with a potential causal link to glucose homeostasis

Lee-Ødegård, Sindre, Hjorth, Marit, Olsen, Thomas, Moen, Gunn-Helen, Daubney, Emily, Evans, David M, Hevener, Andrea L, Lusis, Aldons J, Zhou, Mingqi, Seldin, Marcus M, Allayee, Hooman, Hilser, James, Viken, Jonas Krag, Gulseth, Hanne, Norheim, Frode, Drevon, Christian A and Birkeland, Kåre Inge (2024). Serum proteomic profiling of physical activity reveals CD300LG as a novel exerkine with a potential causal link to glucose homeostasis. eLife, 13 ARTN RP96535. doi: 10.7554/elife.96535

Serum proteomic profiling of physical activity reveals CD300LG as a novel exerkine with a potential causal link to glucose homeostasis

2024

Journal Article

A note on modelling bidirectional feedback loops in Mendelian randomization studies

Hwang, Liang-Dar and Evans, David M. (2024). A note on modelling bidirectional feedback loops in Mendelian randomization studies. Behavior Genetics, 54 (4), 367-373. doi: 10.1007/s10519-024-10183-0

A note on modelling bidirectional feedback loops in Mendelian randomization studies

2024

Journal Article

Ribosomal DNA copy number variation associates with hematological profiles and renal function in the UK Biobank

Rodriguez-Algarra, Francisco, Evans, David M. and Rakyan, Vardhman K. (2024). Ribosomal DNA copy number variation associates with hematological profiles and renal function in the UK Biobank. Cell Genomics, 4 (6) 100562, 100562. doi: 10.1016/j.xgen.2024.100562

Ribosomal DNA copy number variation associates with hematological profiles and renal function in the UK Biobank

2024

Journal Article

A genome-wide association study provides insights into the genetic etiology of 57 essential and non-essential trace elements in humans

Moksnes, Marta R., Hansen, Ailin F., Wolford, Brooke N., Thomas, Laurent F., Rasheed, Humaira, Simić, Anica, Bhatta, Laxmi, Brantsæter, Anne Lise, Surakka, Ida, Zhou, Wei, Magnus, Per, Njølstad, Pål R., Andreassen, Ole A., Syversen, Tore, Zheng, Jie, Fritsche, Lars G., Evans, David M., Warrington, Nicole M., Nøst, Therese H., Åsvold, Bjørn Olav, Flaten, Trond Peder, Willer, Cristen J., Hveem, Kristian and Brumpton, Ben M. (2024). A genome-wide association study provides insights into the genetic etiology of 57 essential and non-essential trace elements in humans. Communications Biology, 7 (1) 432, 432. doi: 10.1038/s42003-024-06101-z

A genome-wide association study provides insights into the genetic etiology of 57 essential and non-essential trace elements in humans

2024

Journal Article

Estimating disease heritability from complex pedigrees allowing for ascertainment and covariates

Speed, Doug and Evans, David M. (2024). Estimating disease heritability from complex pedigrees allowing for ascertainment and covariates. The American Journal of Human Genetics, 111 (4), 680-690. doi: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2024.02.010

Estimating disease heritability from complex pedigrees allowing for ascertainment and covariates

2024

Journal Article

Maternal plasma cortisol’s effect on offspring birth weight: a Mendelian Randomisation study

Thompson, W. D., Reynolds, R. M., Beaumont, R. N., Warrington, N. M., Tyrrell, J., Wood, A. R., Evans, D. M., McDonald, T. J., Hattersley, A. H., Freathy, R. M., Lawlor, D. A. and Borges, M. C. (2024). Maternal plasma cortisol’s effect on offspring birth weight: a Mendelian Randomisation study. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 24 (1) 65, 1-11. doi: 10.1186/s12884-024-06250-3

Maternal plasma cortisol’s effect on offspring birth weight: a Mendelian Randomisation study

2024

Other Outputs

Hwang_2024_NatCommun

Hwang, Daniel and Evans, David (2024). Hwang_2024_NatCommun. The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/9f69854

Hwang_2024_NatCommun

2023

Journal Article

Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth

Beaumont, Robin N., Flatley, Christopher, Vaudel, Marc, Wu, Xiaoping, Chen, Jing, Moen, Gunn-Helen, Skotte, Line, Helgeland, Oyvind, Sole-Navais, Pol, Banasik, Karina, Albinana, Clara, Ronkainen, Justiina, Fadista, Joao, Stinson, Sara Elizabeth, Trajanoska, Katerina, Wang, Carol A., Westergaard, David, Srinivasan, Sundararajan, Sanchez-Soriano, Carlos, Bilbao, Jose Ramon, Allard, Catherine, Groleau, Marika, Kuulasmaa, Teemu, Leirer, Daniel J., White, Frederique, Jacques, Pierre-Etienne, Cheng, Haoxiang, Hao, Ke, Andreassen, Ole A. ... Njolstad, Pal R. (2023). Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth. Nature Genetics, 55 (11), 1807-1819+. doi: 10.1038/s41588-023-01520-w

Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth

2023

Journal Article

Intrauterine growth and offspring neurodevelopmental traits: a Mendelian randomization analysis of the Norwegian mother, father and child cohort study (MoBa)

D’Urso, Shannon, Moen, Gunn-Helen, Hwang, Liang-Dar, Hannigan, Laurie J., Corfield, Elizabeth C., Ask, Helga, Johannson, Stefan, Njølstad, Pål Rasmus, Beaumont, Robin N., Freathy, Rachel M., Evans, David M. and Havdahl, Alexandra (2023). Intrauterine growth and offspring neurodevelopmental traits: a Mendelian randomization analysis of the Norwegian mother, father and child cohort study (MoBa). JAMA Psychiatry, 81 (2), 144-156. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2023.3872

Intrauterine growth and offspring neurodevelopmental traits: a Mendelian randomization analysis of the Norwegian mother, father and child cohort study (MoBa)

2023

Journal Article

Partitioning genetic effects on birthweight at classical human leukocyte antigen loci into maternal and fetal components, using structural equation modelling

Wang, Geng, Warrington, Nicole M. and Evans, David M. (2023). Partitioning genetic effects on birthweight at classical human leukocyte antigen loci into maternal and fetal components, using structural equation modelling. International Journal of Epidemiology, 53 (1) dyad142, 1-9. doi: 10.1093/ije/dyad142

Partitioning genetic effects on birthweight at classical human leukocyte antigen loci into maternal and fetal components, using structural equation modelling

2023

Journal Article

Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth

Beaumont, Robin N., Flatley, Christopher, Vaudel, Marc, Wu, Xiaoping, Chen, Jing, Moen, Gunn-Helen, Skotte, Line, Helgeland, Oyvind, Sole-Navais, Pol, Banasik, Karina, Albinana, Clara, Ronkainen, Justiina, Fadista, Joao, Stinson, Sara Elizabeth, Trajanoska, Katerina, Wang, Carol A., Westergaard, David, Srinivasan, Sundararajan, Sanchez-Soriano, Carlos, Bilbao, Jose Ramon, Allard, Catherine, Groleau, Marika, Kuulasmaa, Teemu, Leirer, Daniel J., White, Frederique, Jacques, Pierre-etienne, Cheng, Haoxiang, Hao, Ke, Andreassen, Ole A. ... Njolstad, Pal R. (2023). Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth. Nature Genetics, 55 (11), 1807-1819. doi: 10.1038/s41588-023-01520-w

Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth

2023

Journal Article

Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth

Beaumont, Robin N., Flatley, Christopher, Vaudel, Marc, Wu, Xiaoping, Chen, Jing, Moen, Gunn-Helen, Skotte, Line, Helgeland, Oyvind, Sole-Navais, Pol, Banasik, Karina, Albinana, Clara, Ronkainen, Justiina, Fadista, Joao, Stinson, Sara Elizabeth, Trajanoska, Katerina, Wang, Carol A., Westergaard, David, Srinivasan, Sundararajan, Sanchez-Soriano, Carlos, Bilbao, Jose Ramon, Allard, Catherine, Groleau, Marika, Kuulasmaa, Teemu, Leirer, Daniel J., White, Frederique, Jacques, Pierre-etienne, Cheng, Haoxiang, Hao, Ke, Andreassen, Ole A. ... Early Growth Genetics Consortium (2023). Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth. Nature Genetics, 1786-1787.

Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth

2023

Journal Article

Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth

Beaumont, Robin N., Flatley, Christopher, Vaudel, Marc, Wu, Xiaoping, Chen, Jing, Moen, Gunn-Helen, Skotte, Line, Helgeland, Øyvind, Solé-Navais, Pol, Banasik, Karina, Albiñana, Clara, Ronkainen, Justiina, Fadista, João, Stinson, Sara Elizabeth, Trajanoska, Katerina, Wang, Carol A., Westergaard, David, Srinivasan, Sundararajan, Sánchez-Soriano, Carlos, Bilbao, Jose Ramon, Allard, Catherine, Groleau, Marika, Kuulasmaa, Teemu, Leirer, Daniel J., White, Frédérique, Jacques, Pierre-Étienne, Cheng, Haoxiang, Hao, Ke, Andreassen, Ole A. ... The Early Growth Genetics (EGG) Consortium (2023). Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth. Nature Genetics, 55 (11), 1807-1819. doi: 10.1038/s41588-023-01520-w

Genome-wide association study of placental weight identifies distinct and shared genetic influences between placental and fetal growth

Funding

Current funding

  • 2023 - 2027
    Developing and Applying Mendelian Randomization Methods to Facilitate Drug Discovery and Solve Intractable Problems in Medical Research
    NHMRC Investigator Grants
    Open grant

Past funding

  • 2020 - 2024
    Developing and Applying Statistical Genetics Methods to Elucidate the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease
    NHMRC IDEAS Grants
    Open grant
  • 2019 - 2022
    Identifying maternal and fetal genetic determinants of infant birthweight and their relationship to offspring cardiometabolic risk
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2018 - 2024
    The role of size, shape and structure of bones and joints, in explaining common musculoskeletal diseases (Wellcome Trust Grant administered by University of Bristol)
    University of Bristol
    Open grant
  • 2018 - 2022
    Developing and applying statistical genetics methods to identify genes, molecular biomarkers and environmental agents that causally affect risk of complex musculoskeletal diseases
    NHMRC Research Fellowship
    Open grant
  • 2018 - 2020
    Enhancing host defence mechanisms in severe bacterial infections
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2017 - 2021
    Development and application of a Mendelian randomization framework aimed at dissecting the biological basis of ankylosing spondylitis and other complex diseases
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2017 - 2020
    Using Methods in Genetic Epidemiology to Elucidate the Relationship Between Viral Infection and Risk of Autoimmune Disease
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2016
    Establishing a gnotobiotic germ-free mouse facility
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2015 - 2016
    A biomarker for sepsis to thwart antibiotic overuse in the intensive care unit
    Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital
    Open grant
  • 2015
    Bivariate genome-wide association study of birth weight and endophenotypes related to five diseases in later life
    UWA-UQ Bilateral Research Collaboration Award
    Open grant
  • 2015 - 2017
    Finding novel genetic associations in Ankylosing Spondylitis
    University of Oxford
    Open grant
  • 2015 - 2018
    Gene expression profiling in critically ill patients with septic shock: The ADRENAL-GEPS Study
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2015 - 2018
    Novel ways of utilizing genome-wide DNA methylation data from peripheral blood samples in genetic epidemiology
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2014
    Calibration of single channel and liquid handling robots
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2014 - 2016
    Dissecting the great ophthalmic masquerade: The Global Giant Cell Arteritis Genomics Consortium (NHMRC Project Grant administered by the Centre for Eye Research Australia)
    Centre for Eye Research Australia
    Open grant
  • 2014
    Multiplex High Throughput Bio-plex Protein Assay Platform
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2012 - 2018
    Clinical Researcher Training
    Research Donation Generic
    Open grant

Supervision

Availability

Professor David Evans is:
Available for supervision

Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.

Available projects

  • Sometimes Correlation does Equal Causation: Developing Statistical Methods to Determine Causality Using Genetic Data

    There is a well-known mantra that correlation does not necessarily equal causation. This is why randomized controlled trials in which participants are physically randomized into treatment and placebo groups are the gold standard for assessing causality in epidemiological investigations. However, what is less appreciated is that strong evidence for causality can sometimes be obtained using observational data only. In particular, genotypes are randomly transmitted from parents to their offspring independent of the environment and other confounding factors, meaning that genotypes associated with particular traits can be used like natural “randomized controlled trials” to examine whether these traits causally affect risk of disease.

    The aim of this PhD project is to develop statistical methods to assess causality using observational data alone. The successful candidate will gain experience across a wide range of advanced statistical genetics methodologies including Mendelian randomization (a way of using genetic variants to investigate putatively causal relationships), structural equation modelling, genome-wide association analysis (GWAS), genetic restricted maximum likelihood (G-REML) analysis of genome-wide data which can be used to partition variation in phenotypes into genetic and environmental sources of variation, and instrumental variables analysis (using natural “experiments” to obtain information on causality from observational data). The candidate will apply the new statistical methods that they develop to large genetically informative datasets like the UK Biobank (500,000 individuals with genome-wide SNP data).

Supervision history

Current supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Multi-omic Approaches to Understanding Septic Shock

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Daniel Hwang

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Developing and Applying Statistical Genetics Methods to Elucidate the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Nicole Warrington

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Investigating the association between maternal and fetal HLA-KIR genotypes and offspring birth weight

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Understanding the genetic epidemiology of women's reproductive health

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Gunn-Helen Moen

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Using genetics to predict drug efficacy and on-target side effects of pharmacological agents

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Glenn King, Dr Sonia Shah

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Harnessing Genetically Informative Within-Family Research Designs for Deeper Insights into the Intrauterine Developmental Period and Downstream Effects on Offspring Neurodevelopmental Outcomes

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Daniel Hwang, Dr Gunn-Helen Moen

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Using multi-omics approaches to characterise determinants of early growth trajectories and their consequences on later life health

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Honorary Professor Jake Gratten, Dr Nicole Warrington

Completed supervision

Media

Enquiries

Contact Professor David Evans directly for media enquiries about:

  • Genetics
  • Genome-wide association
  • Mendelian randomization
  • Twin Studies

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