Anne Marie Jukic, PhD, MSPH
Research & Publications
Biography
News
Research Summary
My research program is targeted towards understanding factors related to fertility, early pregnancy biology and pregnancy outcomes, with the ultimate goal of improving the health of women and children. My research interests have focused on 1) investigating environmental and nutritional exposures that can influence fertility or early pregnancy, 2) describing early pregnancy events that are poorly understood and investigating their associations with pregnancy outcomes, 3) developing high-quality and innovative research methods for perinatal epidemiologic research.
Extensive Research Description
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.
Research Interests
Infertility, Female; Pregnancy; Reproduction; Vitamin D
Public Health Interests
Epidemiology Methods; Reproduction; Perinatal/Prenatal Health
Selected Publications
- Measurement of Vitamin D for Epidemiologic and Clinical Research: Shining Light on a Complex DecisionJukic AMZ, Hoofnagle AN, Lutsey PL. Measurement of Vitamin D for Epidemiologic and Clinical Research: Shining Light on a Complex Decision American Journal Of Epidemiology 2017, 187: 879-890. PMID: 29020155, PMCID: PMC5889008, DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwx297.
- Long-term Recall of Time to PregnancyJukic AM, McConnaughey DR, Weinberg CR, Wilcox AJ, Baird DD. Long-term Recall of Time to Pregnancy Epidemiology 2016, 27: 705-711. PMID: 27487038, PMCID: PMC5444084, DOI: 10.1097/ede.0000000000000506.
- Increasing serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D is associated with reduced odds of long menstrual cycles in a cross-sectional study of African American womenJukic AM, Upson K, Harmon QE, Baird DD. Increasing serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D is associated with reduced odds of long menstrual cycles in a cross-sectional study of African American women Fertility And Sterility 2016, 106: 172-179.e2. PMID: 26997249, PMCID: PMC4930882, DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2016.03.004.
- Impact of female age and nulligravidity on fecundity in an older reproductive age cohortSteiner AZ, Jukic AM. Impact of female age and nulligravidity on fecundity in an older reproductive age cohort Fertility And Sterility 2016, 105: 1584-1588.e1. PMID: 26953733, PMCID: PMC4893975, DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2016.02.028.
- Urinary Concentrations of Phthalate Metabolites and Bisphenol A and Associations with Follicular-Phase Length, Luteal-Phase Length, Fecundability, and Early Pregnancy LossJukic AM, Calafat AM, McConnaughey DR, Longnecker MP, Hoppin JA, Weinberg CR, Wilcox AJ, Baird DD, Calafat A, McConnaughey D, Longnecker M, Hoppin J, Weinberg C, Wilcox A, Baird D. Urinary Concentrations of Phthalate Metabolites and Bisphenol A and Associations with Follicular-Phase Length, Luteal-Phase Length, Fecundability, and Early Pregnancy Loss Environmental Health Perspectives 2015, 124: 321-328. PMID: 26161573, PMCID: PMC4786975, DOI: 10.1289/ehp.1408164.
- Lower plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D is associated with irregular menstrual cycles in a cross-sectional studyJukic AM, Steiner AZ, Baird DD. Lower plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D is associated with irregular menstrual cycles in a cross-sectional study Reproductive Biology And Endocrinology 2015, 13: 20. PMID: 25879830, PMCID: PMC4359493, DOI: 10.1186/s12958-015-0012-5.
- The impact of systematic errors on gestational age estimationJukic AM. The impact of systematic errors on gestational age estimation BJOG An International Journal Of Obstetrics & Gynaecology 2014, 122: 842-842. PMID: 25377244, DOI: 10.1111/1471-0528.13169.
- Length of human pregnancy and contributors to its natural variationJukic AM, Baird DD, Weinberg CR, McConnaughey DR, Wilcox AJ. Length of human pregnancy and contributors to its natural variation Human Reproduction 2013, 28: 2848-2855. PMID: 23922246, PMCID: PMC3777570, DOI: 10.1093/humrep/det297.