Ph.D. 2018
Bio:
My research evaluates how social and biological conditions influence disparities in
health, using mixed methods and perspectives from endocrinology, immunology, and
anthropology. My dissertation work focuses on the impacts of social stratification and
perceived inequality on metabolic disease risk among Honduran immigrants on
the island of Utila, through their influence on neuroendocrine and immune interactions.
In addition, in a parallel project with the Tsimane and Moseten, two forager-
horticulturalist groups from Bolivia, I am also investigating the effects of changing social
and ecological milieu on metabolic risk through how parasitic infection moderates social
influences on the expression of genes (mRNA) related to stress and inflammation.
I am also Lab Manager for the Human Biodemography Laboratory.
Projects:
(1) The effects of perceived stress on neuroendocrine-immune interactions among
Honduran immigrant women
(2) Growth and immune trade-offs among Tsimane children of Bolivia
(3) Populations in transition: Assessing the effects of changing social, economic, and
ecological landscapes on metabolic disease risk among populations undergoing an
epidemiological transition