Doctoral Dissertation Research: Transgenerational Trauma and Resilience

Emory University, Atlanta GA

Investigators

Abstract

The process by which trauma experienced by one generation impacts the environment and biology of subsequent generations is referred to as "transgenerational transmission." This doctoral research project will examine how maternal and grandmaternal experiences of trauma impact the epigenetic DNA methylation profile of grandchildren, within a population that has experienced highly adverse social and environmental conditions. The project will advance knowledge about human biology and interactions between biology, culture and environment. Project outcomes may inform public health research and interventions for at-risk communities. The project will also support student training in a STEM field, and the research will be shared with local partners in education and health, as well as research and practice communities in early childhood development nationally and internationally. Resulting data will allow other researchers to validate or replicate findings in the growing research area of biological embedding and toxic stress. In recent decades, researchers have begun to investigate mechanisms that may help to explain the greater rates of psychological distress and chronic disease seen in children within populations that have experienced extreme stress and adversity. The present research will use questionnaire, hormone, and DNA methylation data to examine how maternal and grandmaternal experiences of trauma - especially those that occurred while the mother or child was in utero - impact child genetic expression and regulation of the stress response. Community-engaged research in this context provides a unique opportunity to study the transgenerational epigenetic transmission of trauma-related changes to the stress response and to learn about the risk and resilience factors that shape child development in the wake of war. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.