Research Project with Ola HAWAII 2017-2021 "Social Immunoepigenetic Conditioning of Diabetes Disparities"

Research Areas

  • Gene-Environment Interactions, Epigenetics, and Chromatin Biology
  • Etiology of Health Disparities: Neurological, Cardiometabolic, Pulmonary, and Cancer
  • Nutrition, Gut Microbiome, and Epigenomic Interactions
  • Multi-Omics, Epigenetic Age, and Biomarker Discovery
  • Community-Engaged Research and Partnerships

Scientific Achievements

  • Pioneered high-throughput epigenomic technologies; defined roles for intragenic DNA methylation in alternative promoter usage and pre-mRNA splicing
  • Founded and directs Hawai‘i’s Epigenomics Core; leads the NIH-funded CRAFT multi-omics core consortium.
  • Established the first CLIA-certified molecular diagnostics lab in a Hawai‘i FQHC; led RADx-UP COVID-19 testing and vaccine education for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities
  • NIH-funded health research cohort studies: HI-SEED (social epigenomics of early diabetes), PONO Health Legacy, and Maui Wildfire Exposure Study (MauiWES)
  • Recognitions: ARCS Foundation “Scientist of the Year” (2024), Kaʻōnohi Award for improving health and wellbeing (2024), and other awards for various community-engaged science and biomedical research

Funding

RCMI Funding: Ola HAWAII U54MD007601-31 Social Immunoepigenetic Conditioning of Diabetes Disparities.
Other funding obtained with RCMI support: U54MD007601-34 Community Driven Approach to Mitigate COVID- 19 Disparities in Hawaii’s Vulnerable Population and R01MD016593 Social Epigenomics of Early Diabetes.

Scientific Advance

Socioeconomic Status, Lifestyle, and DNA Methylation Age Among Racially and Ethnically Diverse Adults: NIMHD Social Epigenomics Program
JAMA Network Open, 2024 PMID: 39073814 PMCID: PMC11287425 DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.21889
Changes in tiny chemical tags on DNA (DNA methylation at CpG sites) can estimate a person’s biological age and even the pace of aging. Tools called epigenetic clocks read these patterns. One clock, DunedinPACE, was built mainly from European-ancestry data, so its performance in other groups has been uncertain. In our JAMA Network Open study of 376 Hawaiʻi adults (Japanese American, Native Hawaiian, and White), the average pace was 1.27—about 27% faster than the reference. Native Hawaiian participants had the highest mean (1.31) and the largest share classified as “fast” (56%). Faster pace tracked with higher BMI and lower neighborhood socioeconomic status, while a healthier diet and more years of education related to slower pace; notably, more moderate-to-vigorous physical activity predicted slower aging among Native Hawaiian adults. Together, the findings highlight both biological etiologies of disparities and modifiable avenues for prevention, warranting further study.
R01 MD016593 NIMHD NIH, U54 MD007601 NIMHD NIH, T32 CA229100 NCI NIH, T32 HL115505 NHLBI NIH
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