Richard M. Sherva PhD
Assistant Professor, Biomedical Genetics
Member, Genome Science Institute
72 E. Concord Street | (617) 638-5361sherva@bu.edu

Sections
Biomedical Genetics
Centers
Evans Center for Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research
Biography
My primary interest is in exploring the genetic epidemiology of complex disease using linkage and association methods. I’ve worked on cardiovascular phenotypes including hypertension, metabolic syndrome, and stroke, as well as psychiatric diseases including addiction and ADHD, with a focus on gene x (gene, environment, drug treatment) interactions. My future work will likely involve pharmacogenetics and personalized medicine, with specific focus on Alzheimer’s disease.
Other Positions
Education
Epidemiology, PhD, University of Minnesota, 2006
Epidemiology, MPH, University of Minnesota, 2002
Biology, BA, Gustavus Adolphus College, 1998
Publications
Zheng Y, Lunetta KL, Liu C, Smith AK, Sherva R, Miller MW, Logue MW. A novel principal component based method for identifying differentially methylated regions in Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC BeadChip data. Epigenetics. 2023 Dec; 18(1):2207959. PMID: 37196182.
Published on 3/15/2023Barr JL, Feehan M, Tak C, Owen LA, Finley RC, Cromwell PA, Lillvis JH, Hicks PM, Au E, Farkas MH, Weiner A, Reynolds AL, Sieminski SF, Sherva RM, Munger MA, Brilliant MH, DeAngelis MM. Heritable Risk and Protective Genetic Components of Glaucoma Medication Non-Adherence. Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Mar 15; 24(6). PMID: 36982708.
Published on 3/15/2023Barr JL, Feehan M, Tak C, Owen LA, Finley RC, Cromwell PA, Lillvis JH, Hicks PM, Au E, Farkas MH, Weiner A, Reynolds AL, Sieminski SF, Sherva RM, Munger MA, Brilliant MH, DeAngelis MM. Heritable Risk and Protective Genetic Components of Glaucoma Medication Non-Adherence. Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Mar 15; 24(6). PMID: 36982708.
Published on 2/21/2023Le Guen Y, Raulin AC, Logue MW, Sherva R, Belloy ME, Eger SJ, Chen A, Kennedy G, Kuchenbecker L, O'Leary JP, Zhang R, Merritt VC, Panizzon MS, Hauger RL, Gaziano JM, Bu G, Thornton TA, Farrer LA, Napolioni V, He Z, Greicius MD. Association of African Ancestry-Specific APOE Missense Variant R145C With Risk of Alzheimer Disease. JAMA. 2023 Feb 21; 329(7):551-560. PMID: 36809323.
Published on 2/1/2023Hayes JP, Pierce ME, Brown E, Salat D, Logue MW, Constantinescu J, Valerio K, Miller MW, Sherva R, Huber BR, Milberg W, McGlinchey R. Genetic Risk for Alzheimer Disease and Plasma Tau Are Associated With Accelerated Parietal Cortex Thickness Change in Middle-Aged Adults. Neurol Genet. 2023 Feb; 9(1):e200053. PMID: 36742995.
Published on 12/22/2022Sherva R, Zhang R, Sahelijo N, Jun G, Anglin T, Chanfreau C, Cho K, Fonda JR, Gaziano JM, Harrington KM, Ho YL, Kremen WS, Litkowski E, Lynch J, Neale Z, Roussos P, Marra D, Mez J, Miller MW, Salat DH, Tsuang D, Wolf E, Zeng Q, Panizzon MS, Merritt VC, Farrer LA, Hauger RL, Logue MW. African ancestry GWAS of dementia in a large military cohort identifies significant risk loci. Mol Psychiatry. 2023 Mar; 28(3):1293-1302. PMID: 36543923.
Published on 12/22/2022Logue MW, Miller MW, Sherva R, Zhang R, Harrington KM, Fonda JR, Merritt VC, Panizzon MS, Hauger RL, Wolf EJ, Neale Z, Gaziano JM. Alzheimer's disease and related dementias among aging veterans: Examining gene-by-environment interactions with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. Alzheimers Dement. 2022 Dec 22. PMID: 36546606.
Published on 10/7/2022Gaddis N, Mathur R, Marks J, Zhou L, Quach B, Waldrop A, Levran O, Agrawal A, Randesi M, Adelson M, Jeffries PW, Martin NG, Degenhardt L, Montgomery GW, Wetherill L, Lai D, Bucholz K, Foroud T, Porjesz B, Runarsdottir V, Tyrfingsson T, Einarsson G, Gudbjartsson DF, Webb BT, Crist RC, Kranzler HR, Sherva R, Zhou H, Hulse G, Wildenauer D, Kelty E, Attia J, Holliday EG, McEvoy M, Scott RJ, Schwab SG, Maher BS, Gruza R, Kreek MJ, Nelson EC, Thorgeirsson T, Stefansson K, Berrettini WH, Gelernter J, Edenberg HJ, Bierut L, Hancock DB, Johnson EO. Multi-trait genome-wide association study of opioid addiction: OPRM1 and beyond. Sci Rep. 2022 Oct 07; 12(1):16873. PMID: 36207451.
Published on 6/29/2021Cox J, Sherva R, Wetherill L, Foroud T, Edenberg HJ, Kranzler HR, Gelernter J, Farrer LA. Genome-wide association study of stimulant dependence. Transl Psychiatry. 2021 06 29; 11(1):363. PMID: 34226506.
Published on 2/28/2021Sherva R, Zhu C, Wetherill L, Edenberg HJ, Johnson E, Degenhardt L, Agrawal A, Martin NG, Nelson E, Kranzler HR, Gelernter J, Farrer LA. Genome-wide association study of phenotypes measuring progression from first cocaine or opioid use to dependence reveals novel risk genes. Explor Med. 2021; 2:60-73. PMID: 34124712.