The Ballinger laboratory focuses on studies that provide more significant insights into understanding the processes and mechanisms that contribute to the etiology of common disease development, particularly processes related to the cardiovasculature and metabolism. To address these questions, his group has pursued studies that combine genetics, metabolism, and physiology from an evolutionary perspective. For the past decade, his laboratory has investigated the role of mitochondrial–nuclear genetic interaction processes that significantly influence common disease development, including cardiovascular, pulmonary, and metabolic conditions.
Dr. Ballinger received his undergraduate and master’s degrees from Texas A&M University, and his doctorate from Emory School of Medicine. He was awarded the Alexander Hoellander Distinguished Fellowship (Department of Energy) while performing postdoctoral studies in environmental Pathology at the University of Vermont, and is was awarded the College of Science Academy of Distinguished Former Students Award at Texas A&M University. He is currently a Professor in the Division of Molecular Pathology, Department of Pathology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
