Jess Winters, BS
Education
BS, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, summa cum laude - Oklahoma State University (2020)
MS, Biological Sciences - Auburn University (2022)
Jessica (Gore) Winters, an Oklahoma native, came to Vanderbilt in 2022 through the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program (IGP). She joined the lab in May 2023 and matriculated into the Human Genetics (HGEN) Program. She is a trainee in the ASPIRE Program in Molecular Medicine and a previous recipient of Vanderbilt's Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (IMSD) Fellowship (T32). She serves as the membership chair for the Human Genetics Student Association (HGSA) and as a new student mentor for both IGP and IMSD. She has previous teaching experience as a TA for both Cell Biology and Vertebrate Development labs at Auburn, and, through an outreach program, she served as a summer physical sciences instructor for junior high students.
Research Information
Prior to Vanderbilt, Jessica's previous research included microbial interactions, pathogenic genetics, and invertebrate immunology. Her research at Vanderbilt has broadly focused on women's health and maternal-fetal medicine. She develops and validates risk assessment tools to evaluate associations between conditions like gestational diabetes mellitus and uterine fibroids. Jessica is passionate about incorporating multiple populations when developing and validating new and existing risk assessment tools, in an attempt to mitigate and address prevalent health disparities. Her dissertation research primarily focuses on the genetics of early menopause and associations with post-menopausal cancer risk, ultimately contributing to improved health outcomes and reduced mortality for post-menopausal individuals.
Active Grants:
1. Vanderbilt's Clinical and Translational Award (CTSA) Training Program (TL1)
Research Interests
women's health, maternal-fetal medicine, reproductive genetics, health disparities, genetic epidemiology, risk assessment, complex traits