Epigentics and Female Reproductive Cancers

描述（由申请人提供）：我是一名环境卫生科学家，过去十年在政府和学术机构从事流行病学工作。目前，我是纽约大学医学院精神病学和环境医学系的助理教授。我被纽约大学招募到一个新的精神病学分子和转化医学部门，这是精神病学部门和癌症研究所共同努力的结果。该司的一个主要重点将是疾病的表观遗传起源。我开始对癌症的表观遗传过程感兴趣是通过我的论文工作以及与我的导师和共同导师在这个K07上的合作。目前，我希望在遗传学、分子生物学和先进的统计方法等几个领域获得必要的培训，以进行这项研究。最终，我想成为一名独立的研究人员，研究女性生殖癌的表观遗传起源。我将需要在我的母校（纽约大学）、哥伦比亚大学和天普大学获得培训，以便我可以与这个领域的一些杰出的研究人员一起工作。在纽约大学，我将接受高级流行病学方法、伦理学和分子生物学方面的指导和培训。Malaspina， Costa和Harlap)。在哥伦比亚大学，我将在R Santella博士的实验室接受应用分子流行病学的培训，并在统计方法上与I Mckeague博士合作。我将在天普大学C. Sapienza博士的实验室接受应用遗传学方面的培训。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): I am an Environmental Health scientist who has worked in epidemiology for the past ten years in governmental and academic settings. Currently, I am an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Environmental Medicine in the School of Medicine, New York University. I was recruited at NYU to form the nucleus of a new Division of Molecular and Translational Medicine in Psychiatry, a combined effort of the Department of Psychiatry and the Cancer Institute. A major focus of this Division will be the epigenetic origins of disease. I became interested in epigenetic processes in cancer through my work on my dissertation and collaborations with my mentor and co-mentors on this K07. Currently, I am looking to obtain the necessary training in several fields including genetics, molecular biology and advanced statistical methods to pursue this research. Eventually I would like to become an independent investigator in the epigenetic origins of female reproductive cancers. I will need to obtain training at both my home institution (NYU), Columbia and Temple Universities so that I may work with some of the pre-eminent researchers in this field. At NYU I will be mentored and trained in advanced epidemiologic methods, ethics and molecular biology (Drs. Malaspina, Costa and Harlap). At Columbia I will be trained in the applied molecular epidemiology in the laboratory of Dr. R Santella and collaborate with Dr. I Mckeague in statistical methods. I will be trained in applied genetics in the laboratory of Dr. C. Sapienza of Temple University. My research will focus on two epigenetic processes: X-chromosome inactivation and loss of imprinting at IGF2. I will investigate in hospital-based case control study, the relation between skewed X-chromosome inactivation and ovarian cancer. Using discordant sister pairs, I will examine the association between breast cancer and skewed X-chromosome inactivation and loss of imprinting at IGF2.1 will also explore the epidemiology these phenomena focusing in particular on paternal and maternal age. Studying X-chromosome inactivation and loss of imprinting at IGF2 and their association with breast and ovarian cancer could serve two purposes: 1) to further understand the underlying biology of these cancers which could lead to better treatment modalities and 2) to identify an at risk group of women who could be targeted for earlier and more frequent screenings.