The scientific leadership leads the D2R Initiative and is composed of Mark Lathrop (Scientific Director) ²¹²Ô»åÌýAmélie Quesnel-Vallée (Associate Scientific Director).

This leadership team, representing various research areas, ensures comprehensive interdisciplinary expertise within the D2R Initiative.

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Scientific Director
Dr. Mark Lathrop

Dr. Lathrop’s research focuses on the application of genomics and statistical/mathematical methods to understand the molecular basis of human disease. His work focuses on large-scale, multi-centric investigations that combine molecular approaches with statistical genetics to unravel the genetic basis of multifactorial disease, and how these can be applied to individualize approaches to disease prevention and treatment (personalised medicine).

Dr. Lathrop was a founding member of the CEPH (Centre d’étude du polymorphisme humain), the organization which pioneered the international scientific collaboration on the human genome. Prior to joining Ï㽶ÊÓƵ, Dr. Lathrop co-founded and was the first scientific director of the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics at the University of Oxford, an institute created to apply genomic approaches to understanding the molecular basis of human disease. Dr. Lathrop later founded the Centre national de génotypage, which he developed into the principal national infrastructure for human genetic studies in France. After joining Ï㽶ÊÓƵ, he helped create the Canadian Genomics Enterprise (CGEn) which is the country's major national genomic sciences initiative. He is also the scientific director of the Victor Phillip Dahdaleh Institute of Genomic Medicine.

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Associate Scientific Director
Dr. Amélie Quesnel-Vallée

Dr. Quesnel-Vallée’s research examines the contribution of policies to social inequalities in health over the life course. It has appeared in journals such as The Lancet, the International Journal of Epidemiology, and Social Science & Medicine and was recognized through several international professional associations’ awards, including from the American Sociological Association, the Population Association of America, and the American Public Health Association, as well as from the Fulbright Canada Foundation. A skilled communicator and teacher, she was awarded the 2021 Fieldhouse Teaching Award from the Faculty of Arts.

Dr. Quesnel-Vallée is committed to furthering public understanding of science, and she is frequently sought by the media such as National Public Radio, the New York Times, and Business Week. She is a Past-President of the International Sociological Association Research Committee on the Sociology of Health and President of the Canadian Population Society.

She has also served on several scientific advisory councils, including as co-Chair of Statistics Canada’s Expert Advisory Committee on Population Health Statistics, and she currently serves on the Governing Council (Board of Directors) of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research as Chair of the Standing Committee on Science and as a member of the Executive Committee.