Dr. Bird’s research interests include: nematode biology and development; genome organization and evolution; structure-function relationships; host-parasite interactions; evolution of parasitism. The primary focus of his research group is to understand the mechanisms underlying parasitic interactions between nematodes and plants. David was a pioneer in framing the key questions in the context of nematode and host development. Together with collaborators world-wide, his group has been instrumental in establishing the root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne hapla, as the preeminent genetic system to model less-tractable nematode-host interactions, and as a platform for comparative genomics (www.hapla.org). His current program also emphasizes vaccine development for malaria-like diseases of cats and dogs.