Faculty Leaders

Dmitri Petrov

Dmitri Petrov is a professor of biology at Stanford. Born in Russia, he received his MSc in physics and biology from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and his PhD in evolutionary genetics from Harvard University. After doing a stint as a junior fellow at the Harvard Society of Fellows, he came to Stanford as a professor in 2000. Dmitri’s research is focused on the genetics of rapid adaptive evolutionary change in a range of organisms, from viruses to elephants. He is the founding director of the Program for Conservation Genomics at Stanford, which develops genomic technology to assist with conservation efforts and fighting the illegal wildlife trade, especially in Southern and East Africa. He does research with lions, elephants, black rhinos and African wild dogs.