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My broad area of research is epigenetics, a field of genetics that examines changes in gene expression (RNA and protein levels) without change to the base DNA sequence itself. My focus within epigenetics are the specific signals that can reprogram differentiated cells into stem cells, allowing for these cells to shift identity and behavior. Early development is an especially interesting area as two differentiated, adult cells are reprogrammed into one pluripotent embryonic cell. Cell to cell communication is vital during this period, where epigenetic signals must be established correctly for appropriate set up of the body’s physiological systems. If these pathways are inappropriately re-activated in the body outside of reproduction and development, we can see malignant cells and cancer develop as a result.
My lab studies these epigenetic reprogramming pathways, and the process by which environmental exposures can inappropriately activate them in adult tissues. I am especially interested in how reproductive hormones can modulate the epigenetic response to environmental exposures, and how that may play a role in disease predisposition.