Anne Marie Jukic, PhD, MSPH
Assistant Professor Adjunct, Chronic Disease EpidemiologyAbout
Titles
Assistant Professor Adjunct, Chronic Disease Epidemiology
Biography
Dr. Anne Marie Jukic is a perinatal epidemiologist whose research spans the perinatal period, from pre-conception, to pregnancy, to pregnancy outcomes and child health. She is interested in early pregnancy, particularly implantation and early placental development, and the relevance of these events for pregnancy health or child health. Her current research focuses on the role of vitamin D in reproduction, and she has published the first papers describing a link between vitamin D and menstrual cycle function in community-based samples of women. Her other work includes investigating environmental exposures (such as phthalates and phenols), other nutritional exposures, and physical activity. After completing a Bachelor's degree at the University of Notre Dame she joined the Peace Corps where she developed an interest in public health. During her graduate work at Emory University she trained at the Centers for Disease Control in the Safe Motherhood Branch. She continued her graduate studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she completed her doctoral dissertation examining physical activity during pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes. She completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS).
Appointments
Departments & Organizations
Education & Training
- Research Fellow
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (2015)
- Postdoctoral Fellow
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (2014)
- PhD
- University of North Carolina @ Chapel Hill (2009)
- MSPH
- Emory University, Epidemiology (2004)
- BS
- University of Notre Dame, Biology (1999)
Research
Overview
Subfecundity (difficulty conceiving a pregnancy) is a pressing public health problem that affects approximately 6.7 million U.S. women with 1.5 million estimated to be infertile. Factors that affect fertility are not well-understood. I have investigated the influence of environmental chemicals (phthalates and phenols) and nutritional factors (vitamin D) on fertility. Vitamin D is hypothesized to influence both fertility and early pregnancy, making it an ideal exposure for someone with my background and interests. If vitamin D is important for reproductive function it would be easy to assess clinically, and serve as a low-cost intervention for regulating menstrual cycles and improving fertility. I have published three studies showing a higher odds of irregular or long menstrual cycles in women with lower 25(OH)D. Moreover, high levels of vitamin D were associated with improved fertility. This research suggests that fertility may be improved by increasing women's vitamin D levels. Vitamin D is a low-cost, widely available supplement that could shorten the time it takes a woman to conceive, saving her time and the costs of infertility evaluations or treatments. My research will further explore this possibility.
In addition to these primary research projects I am working on an investigation of microRNA and early placental development. MicroRNA (miRNA) are small non-coding RNA that regulate gene expression. I also work with colleagues in Norway to investigate the placenta - how exposures influence placental development and how placental development may be influenced by pregnancy complications. Other Norwegian datasets can be used to investigate childhood health outcomes such as cerebral palsy and neurodevelopment.