About

I am a second-year postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Fasil Tekola-Ayele’s Genetic Epidemiology lab, Epidemiology Branch of the Division of Population Health Research. I have educational background in clinical nursing and epidemiology, trained in Africa, Europe, and the United States. My current research focuses on the interplay between cardiometabolic genetic risk, epigenetics, ancestry, and environmental factors on fetal and neonatal growth. I also investigate the link between the trajectory of maternal glycemic status during pregnancy and placental epigenetic age acceleration. I have specific training and expertise in epidemiological research and big data analysis on cardiometabolic diseases and severe psychiatric disorders. I successfully designed research projects, collaborated with other researchers, and published more than 50 peer-reviewed articles. I have also received multiple awards including top publication awards and high-class honors. My long-term goal is to become an independent researcher in the genetic epidemiology of cardiometabolic (i.e., type 2 diabetes, obesity, hypertension) and neuropsychiatric diseases (i.e., schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, autism, bipolar disorder). Genetic epidemiology is a thriving field of study with the potential to bring a new world of knowledge for personalized disease diagnosis and treatment through the integrated analysis of big and multi-dimensional datasets.