Education

• 2010-2014 | Integrated M.Sc. & Ph.D. | Bilkent University, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Ankara, Turkey
• 2005-2010 | B.Sc. | Hacettepe University, Department of Biology, Ankara, Turkey

Previous Positions

• 2022-2026 | Hacettepe University, Institute of Health Sciences, Department of Bioinformatics
• 2019-2022 | Lecturer | Hacettepe University, Institute of Health Sciences, Department of Bioinformatics
• 2017-2018 | Postdoctoral Researcher | Stockholm University, Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies, Ancient DNA Laboratory
• 2016 | Postdoctoral Researcher, EMBO Fellow | Uppsala University, Department of Evolutionary Biology
• 2015-2017 | Postdoctoral Researcher, TÜBİTAK Fellow | METU, Department of Biological Sciences
• 2010-2014 | Research Assistant | Bilkent University, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics

Research Summary

Dr. Gülşah Merve Kılınç’s research focuses on evolutionary genomics, bioinformatics, and archaeogenomics. Her work combines ancient and modern genomic data using time-series approaches to investigate the long-term evolutionary dynamics of complex traits, disease-associated genetic variants, and host–microbiome interactions. Specifically, she explores how environmental changes, lifestyle shifts, and demographic processes impact genetic diversity, disease risk, and adaptation in human populations. Her research also aims to uncover the genomic foundations of health and disease relationships in ancient microbiomes and past human populations.

Selected Publications

1. Rodríguez-Varela R. et al. The genetic history of Scandinavia from the Roman Iron Age to the present. Cell. 2023;186(1):32-46.e19. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2022.11.024.
2. Kılınç GM, Kashuba N, Koptekin D. et al. Human population dynamics and Yersinia pestis in ancient northeast Asia. Science Advances. 2021. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.abc4587.
3. Krzewińska M, Kılınç GM, Juras A. et al. Ancient genomes suggest the eastern Pontic-Caspian steppe as the source of western Iron Age nomads. Science Advances. 2018.
4. Günther T. et al. Population genomics of Mesolithic Scandinavia: Investigating early postglacial migration routes and high-latitude adaptation. PLOS Biology. 2017;16(1):e2003703.
5. Kılınç GM, Omrak A, Özer F. et al. The Demographic Development of the First Farmers in Anatolia. Current Biology. 2016;26:1-8.

Other Publications

6. Bozkurt C. et al. Comprehensive alpha beta T-Cell Receptor Repertoire Analysis Reveals a Unique CD8+ TCR Landscape in DOCK8-Deficient Patients. Allergy. 2025. doi: 10.1111/all.16580.
7. Çubukcu H, Kılınç GM. Evaluation of genotype imputation using Glimpse tools on low coverage ancient DNA. Mammalian Genome. 2024;35(3):461-473. doi: 10.1007/s00335-024-10053-4.
8. Koptekin D. et al. Spatial and temporal heterogeneity in human mobility patterns in Holocene Southwest Asia and the East Mediterranean. Current Biology. 2023.
9. Altınışık NE. et al. A genomic snapshot of demographic and cultural dynamism in Upper Mesopotamia during the Neolithic Transition. Science Advances. 2022;8(44):eabo3609.
10. Yurtman E. et al. Archaeogenetic analysis of Neolithic sheep from Anatolia suggests a complex demographic history since domestication. Communications Biology. 2021.

For the complete publication list, please refer to Google Scholar or Web of Science profile.

Book Chapters and Other Publications

• Kılınç GM. Bioinformatics Approaches for Detecting Selection. Encyclopedia of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, 2nd Edition, Elsevier, 2025.
• Yaka R. et al. Ancient genomics in Neolithic Central Anatolia and Çatalhöyük. Peopling the Landscape of Çatalhöyük, British Institute of Archaeology at Ankara, 2021.
• Kılınç GM. Tarımın Yakın Doğu ve Avrupa Biyocoğrafyasındaki Yolculuğu: Arkeogenomik Yaklaşımlarla Yeni Bulgular. Kebikeç. 2017;43:235-245.