Malone Postdoctoral Fellow

Research Interests:

• Computational regulatory genomics
• Computational genetics
• Genome organization and gene regulation
• Transcription factor rewiring and cell fate
• Machine learning for sequence-to-function modeling

Hammad Farooq is a Malone Postdoctoral Fellow advised by Alexis Battle and affiliated with the Battle Lab. His work examines how transcription factors help determine which regulatory elements become active and how the 3D organization of the genome influences which genes those elements control.

By combining computational modeling, machine learning, and genomic data integration, Farooq studies how DNA sequence, chromatin architecture, and noncoding genetic variation shape gene regulation, cell fate decisions, and disease susceptibility. As a Malone Postdoctoral Fellow, he aims to develop multimodal computational methods that make genetic variants more interpretable and improve our understanding of how changes in the human genome influence disease risk and human health.

Farooq completed his PhD in bioinformatics at the University of Illinois Chicago in June 2026. His doctoral research focused on understanding how cells with nearly identical genomes acquire distinct identities by interpreting the same DNA through different regulatory contexts.