Dr. Sabeti's lab focuses on developing new analytical and genomic methods to study evolutionary adaptation and genetic diversity in humans and pathogens, with three current research foci: (1) Identifying and characterizing the underlying adaptive changes that have shaped the human species over time; and (2) Investigating genetic diversity in pathogens such as Lassa virus, Ebola virus, Zika virus, and Babesia microti, towards improved diagnostics, surveillance, and interventions, and (3) Developing novels tools to detect and diagnose microbes causing human morbidity and mortality.

Dr. Sabeti's computational genomic lab has contributed to widely varying fields — including human evolutionary biology, gene therapy, microbial sequencing, information theory, and disease surveillance. They aim to create comprehensive approaches for detecting, containing, and treating deadly infectious diseases, including Lassa virus, Ebola virus, Zika virus, and SARS-CoV-2. She has invested in capacity building and education throughout, co-founding the African Center for Excellence of Genomic of Infectious Disease, enabling the first diagnosis of Ebola in Sierra Leone and Nigeria, training thousands of scientists through extended educational programs, and establishing genome centers in West Africa.