Project Summary
The work outlined in this proposal is meant to provide the training and skills necessary to begin my
independent academic career as a molecular epidemiologist capable of securing a tenure-track faculty position
and my own research support. My doctoral research focused on the mechanistic relationship of DNA
methylation and gene transcription, which paved the way for the analysis and interpretation of more
complicated population studies of the molecular mechanisms that underlie gestational exposures. My
experience has led to my primary research interest in how early-life exposures influence children's health. I will
accomplish my goals through training, mentorship and a rigorous research project that integrates genetic,
epigenetic and transcriptomic measures to assess the role of placenta- and breastmilk-mediated exposures in
relation to early-life growth and metabolism.
Through my research and training plan, I will gain expertise in epidemiologic methods and study
design; childhood growth, nutrition and obesity; and microRNA biology. I will receive personalized training from
my co-mentors, Dr. Carmen Marsit, an expert in molecular epidemiology, and Dr. Usha Ramakrishnan, an
expert in children's growth and nutrition. I will receive additional guidance from a transdisciplinary advisory
committee composed of Drs. Margaret Karagas, Michael Epstein, and Scott Langevin. This team has expertise
in integrative genomics, bioinformatics, statistical genetics, early-life epidemiology and microRNA biology.
Emory University is home to Rollins School of Public Health, ranked 5th in the US, as well as to world leaders in
epidemiology and human genetics research. The formal training and expert guidance I will receive here will
enable me to achieve my long-term career goal of becoming an independent, early-life molecular
epidemiologist capable of securing a tenure-track faculty position and my own research support.
The research proposed here will address the following gaps in knowledge: 1) the role of placental
microRNAs in early-childhood growth and metabolism; 2) the genetic and epigenetic dynamics that underlie
microRNA expression in placenta; and 3) the role of placental and extracellular breastmilk microRNAs as
mediators of maternal metabolic status influence on early childhood metabolic status. My research will provide
insight into the contribution of gestational and early-life exposures in the development of early growth and
metabolic status. More broadly, the knowledge gained through this research study has the potential to
contribute to microRNA biology, placental biology, obesity and to the Developmental Origins of Health and
Disease (DOHaD). Finally, my proposed training and research will prepare me for an independent research
career, in which I utilize cutting-edge `omics methods in population-studies to assess the molecular
mechanisms that underlie children's health and develop biomarkers that inform recommendations for disease
prevention.