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
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Bachelor (Honours), The University of Queensland
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
Research interests
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Mendelian randomization
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Genome-wide association studies
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Causal Modeling
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Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD)
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Laterality
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Sepsis
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Osteoporosis
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Ankylosing Spondylitis
Works
Search Professor David Evans’s works on UQ eSpace
2019
Conference Publication
Using Mendelian randomization to estimate the causal effect of maternal (intrauterine) exposures on late onset offspring outcomes
Evans, David, Warrington, Nicole, Partida, Gabriel Cuellar and Hwang, Daniel (2019). Using Mendelian randomization to estimate the causal effect of maternal (intrauterine) exposures on late onset offspring outcomes. 49th Annual Meeting of the Behavior Genetics Association (BGA), Stockholm, Sweden, 26-29 June, 2019. New York, NY, United States: Springer New York LLC. doi: 10.1007/s10519-019-09973-8
2019
Conference Publication
Genes within the context of development: changes in genetic trait architectures during childhood and adolescence
St Pourcain, Beate, Eaves, Lindon, Verhoef, Ellen, Shapland, Chin Yang, Ring, Susan M., Fisher, Simon E., Medland, Sarah E., Evans, David and Smith, George Davey (2019). Genes within the context of development: changes in genetic trait architectures during childhood and adolescence. 25th World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), Orlando, FL, United States, 13-17 October 2017. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2017.06.071
2019
Journal Article
Discovery of the first genome-wide significant risk loci for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder
Demontis, Ditte, Walters, Raymond K., Martin, Joanna, Mattheisen, Manuel, Als, Thomas D., Agerbo, Esben, Baldursson, Gísli, Belliveau, Rich, Bybjerg-Grauholm, Jonas, Bækvad-Hansen, Marie, Cerrato, Felecia, Chambert, Kimberly, Churchhouse, Claire, Dumont, Ashley, Eriksson, Nicholas, Gandal, Michael, Goldstein, Jacqueline I., Grasby, Katrina L., Grove, Jakob, Gudmundsson, Olafur O., Hansen, Christine S., Hauberg, Mads Engel, Hollegaard, Mads V., Howrigan, Daniel P., Huang, Hailiang, Maller, Julian B., Martin, Alicia R., Martin, Nicholas G., Moran, Jennifer ... Kemp, John P. (2019). Discovery of the first genome-wide significant risk loci for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Nature Genetics, 51 (1), 63-75. doi: 10.1038/s41588-018-0269-7
2018
Journal Article
Antibody response to common human viruses is shaped by genetic factors
Hayward, Tanisha A., Zhu, Gu, Warrington, Nicole M., Wong, Yide, Ryan, Rachael Y.M., Murray, Abella M., Haigh, Oscar, Martin, Nicholas G., Miles, John J. and Evans, David M. (2018). Antibody response to common human viruses is shaped by genetic factors. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 143 (4), 1640-1643. doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2018.11.039
2018
Journal Article
Genetic determinants of glucose levels in pregnancy: genetic risk scores analysis and GWAS in the Norwegian STORK cohort
Moen, Gunn-Helen, LeBlanc, Marissa, Sommer, Christine, Prasad, Rashmi B., Lekva, Tove, Normann, Kjersti R., Qvigstad, Elisabeth, Groop, Leif, Birkeland, Kåre I., Evans, David M. and Frøslie, Kathrine F. (2018). Genetic determinants of glucose levels in pregnancy: genetic risk scores analysis and GWAS in the Norwegian STORK cohort. European Journal of Endocrinology, 179 (6), 363-372. doi: 10.1530/EJE-18-0478
2018
Journal Article
Novel pleiotropic risk loci for melanoma and nevus density implicate multiple biological pathways
Duffy, David L., Zhu, Gu, Li, Xin, Sanna, Marianna, Iles, Mark M., Jacobs, Leonie C., Evans, David M., Yazar, Seyhan, Beesley, Jonathan, Law, Matthew H., Kraft, Peter, Visconti, Alessia, Taylor, John C., Lui, Fan, Wright, Margaret J., Henders, Anjali K., Bowdler, Lisa, Glass, Dan, Ikram, Arfan M., Uitterlinden, André G., Madden, Pamela A., Heath, Andrew C., Nelson, Elliot C., Green, Adele C., Chanock, Stephen, Barrett, Jennifer H., Brown, Matthew A., Hayward, Nicholas K., MacGregor, Stuart ... Martin, Nicholas G. (2018). Novel pleiotropic risk loci for melanoma and nevus density implicate multiple biological pathways. Nature Communications, 9 (1) 4774, 4774. doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-06649-5
2018
Journal Article
Imputation-based analysis of MICA alleles in the susceptibility to ankylosing spondylitis
Cortes, Adrian, Gladman, Dafna, Raychaudhuri, Soumya, Cui, Jing, Wheeler, Lawrie, Brown, Matthew A., International Genetics of Ankylosing Spondylitis Consortium (IGAS) and Evans, David (2018). Imputation-based analysis of MICA alleles in the susceptibility to ankylosing spondylitis. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, 77 (11), 1691-1692. doi: 10.1136/annrheumdis-2018-213413
2018
Journal Article
Genome analyses of >200,000 individuals identify 58 loci for chronic inflammation and highlight pathways that link inflammation and complex disorders
Ligthart, Symen, Vaez, Ahmad, Võsa, Urmo, Stathopoulou, Maria G., de Vries, Paul S., Prins, Bram P., Van der Most, Peter J., Tanaka, Toshiko, Naderi, Elnaz, Rose, Lynda M., Wu, Ying, Karlsson, Robert, Barbalic, Maja, Lin, Honghuang, Pool, René, Zhu, Gu, Macé, Aurélien, Sidore, Carlo, Trompet, Stella, Mangino, Massimo, Sabater-Lleal, Maria, Kemp, John P., Abbasi, Ali, Kacprowski, Tim, Verweij, Niek, Smith, Albert V., Huang, Tao, Marzi, Carola, Feitosa, Mary F. ... Alizadeh, Behrooz Z. (2018). Genome analyses of >200,000 individuals identify 58 loci for chronic inflammation and highlight pathways that link inflammation and complex disorders. American Journal of Human Genetics, 103 (5), 691-706. doi: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2018.09.009
2018
Journal Article
Identification of novel loci associated with hip shape: a meta-analysis of genomewide association studies
Baird, Denis A., Evans, Daniel S., Kamanu, Frederick K., Gregory, Jennifer S., Saunders, Fiona R., Giuraniuc, Claudiu V., Barr, Rebecca J., Aspden, Richard M., Jenkins, Deborah, Kiel, Douglas P., Orwoll, Eric S., Cummings, Steven R., Lane, Nancy E., Mullin, Benjamin H., Williams, Frances M. K., Richards, J Brent, Wilson, Scott G., Spector, Tim D., Faber, Benjamin G., Lawlor, Deborah A., Grundberg, Elin, Ohlsson, Claes, Pettersson-Kymmer, Ulrika, Capellini, Terence D., Richard, Daniel, Beck, Thomas J., Evans, David M., Paternoster, Lavinia, Karasik, David and Tobias, Jonathan H. (2018). Identification of novel loci associated with hip shape: a meta-analysis of genomewide association studies. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, 34 (2), 241-251. doi: 10.1002/jbmr.3605
2018
Journal Article
Genome-wide association study of extreme high bone mass: contribution of common genetic variation to extreme BMD phenotypes and potential novel BMD-associated genes
Gregson, Celia L., Newell, Felicity, Leo, Paul J., Clark, Graeme R., Paternoster, Lavinia, Marshall, Mhairi, Forgetta, Vincenzo, Morris, John A., Ge, Bing, Bao, Xiao, Duncan Bassett, J. H., Williams, Graham R., Youlten, Scott E., Croucher, Peter I., Davey Smith, George, Evans, David M., Kemp, John P., Brown, Matthew A., Tobias, Jon H. and Duncan, Emma L. (2018). Genome-wide association study of extreme high bone mass: contribution of common genetic variation to extreme BMD phenotypes and potential novel BMD-associated genes. Bone, 114, 62-71. doi: 10.1016/j.bone.2018.06.001
2018
Journal Article
Assessing the role of DNA methylation-derived neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in rheumatoid arthritis
Ambatipudi, Srikant, Sharp, Gemma C., Clarke, Sarah L. N., Plant, Darren, Tobias, Jonathan H., Evans, David M., Barton, Anne and Belton, Caroline L. (2018). Assessing the role of DNA methylation-derived neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in rheumatoid arthritis. Journal of Immunology Research, 2018 2624981, 1-10. doi: 10.1155/2018/2624981
2018
Journal Article
Are serum concentrations of vitamin B-12 causally related to cardiometabolic risk factors and disease? A Mendelian randomization study
Moen, Gunn-Helen, Qvigstad, Elisabeth, Birkeland, Kåre I., Evans, David M. and Sommer, Christine (2018). Are serum concentrations of vitamin B-12 causally related to cardiometabolic risk factors and disease? A Mendelian randomization study. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 108 (2), 398-404. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/nqy101
2018
Conference Publication
Dermatopathologic and Optical Coherence Tomography "Cracked Mud Sign" in Pseudoxanthoma Elasticum
Brown, Ashley E., Wykoff, Charles Clifton, Hsu, Sylvia and Brown, David M. (2018). Dermatopathologic and Optical Coherence Tomography "Cracked Mud Sign" in Pseudoxanthoma Elasticum. Annual Meeting of the Association-for-Research-in-Vision-and-Ophthalmology (ARVO), Honolulu Hi, Apr 21-May 03, 2018. ROCKVILLE: ASSOC RESEARCH VISION OPHTHALMOLOGY INC.
2018
Conference Publication
Clinical Study of Squalamine Lactate Ophthalmic Solution 0.2% in Combination with Ranibizumab Compared to Ranibizimab Monotherapy in Treatment Naive Neovascular Age-Related Macular DegenerationClinical Study of Squalamine Lactate Ophthalmic Solution 0.2% in Combination with Ranibizumab Compared to Ranibizimab Monotherapy in Treatment Naive Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Elman, Michael J., Brown, David M., Kaiser, Peter K. and Slakter, Jason S. (2018). Clinical Study of Squalamine Lactate Ophthalmic Solution 0.2% in Combination with Ranibizumab Compared to Ranibizimab Monotherapy in Treatment Naive Neovascular Age-Related Macular DegenerationClinical Study of Squalamine Lactate Ophthalmic Solution 0.2% in Combination with Ranibizumab Compared to Ranibizimab Monotherapy in Treatment Naive Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration. Annual Meeting of the Association-for-Research-in-Vision-and-Ophthalmology (ARVO), Honolulu Hi, Apr 21-May 03, 2018. ROCKVILLE: ASSOC RESEARCH VISION OPHTHALMOLOGY INC.
2018
Conference Publication
Predictability of the 12-week dosing status at Week 48 for patients receiving brolucizumab in HAWK and HARRIER
Dugel, Pravin U., Lang, Gabriele Elisabeth, Razavi, Sam, Weichselberger, Andreas, Ogura, Yuichiro and Brown, David M. (2018). Predictability of the 12-week dosing status at Week 48 for patients receiving brolucizumab in HAWK and HARRIER. Annual Meeting of the Association-for-Research-in-Vision-and-Ophthalmology (ARVO), Honolulu Hi, Apr 21-May 03, 2018. ROCKVILLE: ASSOC RESEARCH VISION OPHTHALMOLOGY INC.
2018
Conference Publication
Fluocinolone acetonide ( FAc) 0.2 mg intravitreal implant in the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME)
Liu, John, Coney, Joseph, Schartman, Jerome, Miller, David G., Zegarra, Hernando and Rao, Llewelyn (2018). Fluocinolone acetonide ( FAc) 0.2 mg intravitreal implant in the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME). Annual Meeting of the Association-for-Research-in-Vision-and-Ophthalmology (ARVO), Honolulu Hi, Apr 21-May 03, 2018. ROCKVILLE: ASSOC RESEARCH VISION OPHTHALMOLOGY INC.
2018
Conference Publication
Intravitreal Aflibercept Injection (IAI) for Moderately Severe to Severe Nonproliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (NPDR): The Phase 3 PANORAMA Study
Brown, David M. (2018). Intravitreal Aflibercept Injection (IAI) for Moderately Severe to Severe Nonproliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (NPDR): The Phase 3 PANORAMA Study. Annual Meeting of the Association-for-Research-in-Vision-and-Ophthalmology (ARVO), Honolulu Hi, Apr 21-May 03, 2018. ROCKVILLE: ASSOC RESEARCH VISION OPHTHALMOLOGY INC.
2018
Conference Publication
Suprachoroidal Space Alterations after Delivery of Triamcinolone Acetonide: Post-Hoc Analysis of the Phase 1/2 HULK Study of Patients with Diabetic Macular Edema
Lampen, Shaun Ian Retief, Khurana, Rahul N., Brown, David M. and Wykoff, Charles Clifton (2018). Suprachoroidal Space Alterations after Delivery of Triamcinolone Acetonide: Post-Hoc Analysis of the Phase 1/2 HULK Study of Patients with Diabetic Macular Edema. Annual Meeting of the Association-for-Research-in-Vision-and-Ophthalmology (ARVO), Honolulu Hi, Apr 21-May 03, 2018. ROCKVILLE: ASSOC RESEARCH VISION OPHTHALMOLOGY INC.
2018
Journal Article
Genome-wide survey of parent-of-origin effects on DNA methylation identifies candidate imprinted loci in humans
Cuellar Partida, Gabriel, Laurin, Charles, Ring, Susan M., Gaunt, Tom R., McRae, Allan, Visscher, Peter M., Montgomery, Grant W., Martin, Nicholas G., Hemani, Gibran, Suderman, Matthew, Relton, Caroline L., Davey Smith, George and Evans, David M. (2018). Genome-wide survey of parent-of-origin effects on DNA methylation identifies candidate imprinted loci in humans. Human Molecular Genetics, 27 (16), 2927-2939. doi: 10.1093/hmg/ddy206
2018
Journal Article
Genome-wide association meta-analysis highlights light-induced signaling as a driver for refractive error
Tedja, Milly S., Wojciechowski, Robert, Hysi, Pirro G., Eriksson, Nicholas, Furlotte, Nicholas A., Verhoeven, Virginie J. M., Iglesias, Adriana I., Meester-Smoor, Magda A., Tompson, Stuart W., Fan, Qiao, Khawaja, Anthony P., Cheng, Ching-Yu, Höhn, René, Yamashiro, Kenji, Wenocur, Adam, Grazal, Clare, Haller, Toomas, Metspalu, Andres, Wedenoja, Juho, Jonas, Jost B., Wang, Ya Xing, Xie, Jing, Mitchell, Paul, Foster, Paul J., Klein, Barbara E. K., Klein, Ronald, Paterson, Andrew D., Hosseini, S. Mohsen, Shah, Rupal L. ... UK Biobank Eye and Vision Consortium (2018). Genome-wide association meta-analysis highlights light-induced signaling as a driver for refractive error. Nature Genetics, 50 (6), 834-848. doi: 10.1038/s41588-018-0127-7
Funding
Current funding
Supervision
Availability
- Professor David Evans is:
- Available for supervision
Looking for a supervisor? Read our advice on how to choose a supervisor.
Available projects
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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
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Doctor Philosophy
Improved understanding of complex traits through intermediate phenotypes and robust methodologies
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Daniel Hwang
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Doctor Philosophy
Understanding the genetic epidemiology of women's reproductive health
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Gunn-Helen Moen
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Doctor Philosophy
Developing and Applying Statistical Genetics Methods to Elucidate the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Nicole Warrington
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Doctor Philosophy
Using genetics to predict drug efficacy and on-target side effects of pharmacological agents
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Glenn King, Associate Professor Sonia Shah
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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
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Doctor Philosophy
Investigating the relationship between adverse perinatal environments and the development of childhood depression and anxiety using statistical genetics methods
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Daniel Hwang
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Doctor Philosophy
Genetics of sensory nutrition - using genetics to understand how taste and olfactory perception influences eating behaviour and health
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Brooke Devlin, Dr Daniel Hwang
Completed supervision
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2024
Doctor Philosophy
Using genetics to investigate the interplay of maternal and fetal factors in pregnancy outcomes
Principal Advisor
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2024
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
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2023
Doctor Philosophy
Using Genetics to Understand the Relationship Between the Intrauterine Environment and Future Offspring Cardiometabolic Risk
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Nicole Warrington
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2019
Doctor Philosophy
Detecting and Quantifying the Effect of Assortative mating and Maternal Effects on Statistical Genetics Analyses
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Nicole Warrington
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Media
Enquiries
Contact Professor David Evans directly for media enquiries about:
- Genetics
- Genome-wide association
- Mendelian randomization
- Twin Studies
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