Professional Interests: The broad goal of Dr. Marsit's research program is to investigate gene environment interactions and their individual and combined impact on human disease, with a particular focus on the impact of the environment and lifestyle on the character of the human epigenome. His research has focused on two distinct, yet highly related biologic processes, that of environmental carcinogenesis and that of human development. In those settings, Dr. Marsit's laboratory studies how epigenetic mechanisms and their alterations are responsible, in a significant part, for cancer, adverse pregnancy outcomes, and common and rare diseases of childhood including behavioral disorders. The laboratory focuses on DNA methylation and miRNA expression as our key epigenetic mechanisms of interest.This research aims to provide a sound molecular basis for the emerging paradigm that there are fetal origins to much of adult health and disease. Dr. Marsit's laboratory utilizes modern molecular biology and genetics applied in the setting of epidemiologic studies to study the effects of the environment on multiple facets of epigenetic regulation, and thereby is creating a novel interdisciplinary approach to understanding the pathogenesis of human disease. Paramount to meeting these objectives is creating a collaborative and multidisciplinary team of clinicians, epidemiologists, biologists, and statisticians who, by working together, are committed to combining efforts to reach these goals.