Jane F. Ferguson, PhD
My research focuses on the genetics of cardiometabolic diseases, with a particular focus on functional genomics and clinical translation. I am particularly interested in the interactions between genetic and environmental factors in disease development, and in the use of evoked phenotypes as a tool for genomic discovery.
Research in the Ferguson Lab is broadly focused on genomic and environmental determinants of complex disease, and in the role of inflammation in disease development. Current research projects include: 1) Probing the determinants of α-aminoadipic acid (2-AAA) and understanding the relationship to diabetes; 2) Metabolomics and virtual biomarker studies in cardiometabolic disease; 3) Understanding the genomic determinants of febrile illness, and in particular, the effect of the 7p11.2 locus on sepsis, SIRS, and acute inflammatory illness; and 4) Studying the human microbiome, and the interaction between diet, the microbiome, and the metabolome in cardiometabolic risk.
Dr. Ferguson completed a BA in Human Genetics at Trinity College Dublin, and a PhD in Nutrigenomics at University College Dublin, Ireland. She completed postdoctoral training at the University of Pennsylvania, and joined the VUMC faculty in 2014