I am an evolutionary geneticist interested in understanding patterns of genetic, linguistic, and cultural variation among human populations at different temporal and geographical scales, and how these inform us about the evolutionary history of human societies. My research adopts an interdisciplinary approach, collaborating closely with linguists, archaeologists, anthropologists, and indigenous communities. My work has focused on the population history Western Amazonia, where I have done extensive fieldwork with indigenous communities. During my postdoctoral position at the University of Tübingen I am using ancient DNA to study the demographic and evolutionary history of past Native American populations.

2026. Postdoctoral researcher at the Archaeo- and Palaeo-genetics group, Institute for Archaeological Sciences, Senckenberg Center for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment (SHEP), Eberhard Karls University Tübingen

2024 - 2025. Postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Evolutionary Genetics at the Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany

2020 - 2024. Postdoctoral researcher Leiden University Centre for Linguistics, Leiden, Netherlands

2019 - 2020. Postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Evolutionary Genetics at the Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany

2018. PhD/Dr.rer.nat. Evolutionary Genetics (summa cum laude), at the Faculty of life sciences, Leipzig University, Germany and the Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany

2012. MSc. Biology (with special qualification in genetics), Faculty of Natural Sciences, Dept. Biology, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Colombia

2006. BSc. Biology (mention in genetics), Faculty of Natural Sciences, Dept. Biology, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Colombia

• Arias, L., Barbieri C, Barreto G, Stoneking M, Pakendorf B (2018) High resolution mitochondrial DNA analysis sheds light on human diversity, cultural interactions and population mobility in Northwestern Amazonia. American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 2018;165:238–255.
• Arias, L., Schröder R., Hübner A, Barreto G, Stoneking M, & Pakendorf B. (2018). Cultural innovations influence patterns of genetic diversity in Northwestern Amazonia. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 35(11), 2719-2735.
• Krettek, K.-L., Casas-Vargas, A., Mas-Sandoval, A., Arias Alvis, L., Reiter, E., Madero, J. M., Urban, M., Vargas, J. C. N., Usaquén, W., Cuenca, J. V. R., & Posth, C. (2025). A 6000-year-long genomic transect from the Bogotá Altiplano reveals multiple genetic shifts in the demographic history of Colombia. Science Advances, 11(22): eads6284.
• Stoneking, M., Arias, L., Liu, D., Oliveira, S., Pugach, I., Rodriguez, J.J.R.B. (2023). Genomic perspectives on human dispersals during the Holocene. PNAS 120 (4) e2209475119 doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2209475119.
• Arias, L., Emlen N.Q., Norder S., Julmi N.P., Lemus S.M., Chacon T., Wiegertjes J.S.,
  Howard A.H., Azevedo M.C.B.C., Caine A., Dunn S.E., Stoneking M. & Gijn R. van (2022),
  Interpreting mismatches between linguistic and genetic patterns among speakers of
  Tanimuka (Eastern Tukanoan) and Yukuna (Arawakan). Interface Focus 13: 20220056. doi.org/10.1098/rsfs.2022.0056
• Barbieri, C., Barquera, R., Arias, L., Sandoval, J. R., Acosta, O., Zurita, C., Aguilar-Campos, A., Tito-Álvarez, A. M., Serrano-Osuna, R., Gray, R. D., Mafessoni, F., Heggarty, P., Shimizu, K. K., Fujita, R., Stoneking, M., Pugach, I., & Fehren-Schmitz, L. (2019). The current genomic landscape of Western South America: Andes, Amazonia, and Pacific Coast. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 36(12), 2698–2713.
• Kutanan, W., Liu, D., Kampuansai, J., Srikummool, M., Srithawong, S., Shoocongdej, R., Sangkhano, S., Ruangchai, S., Pittayaporn, P., Arias, L., & Stoneking, M. (2021). Reconstructing the human genetic history of mainland Southeast Asia: Insights from genome-wide data from Thailand and Laos. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 38(8), 3459-3477.