A Transdisciplinary Approach to Understand the Epigenetic Basis of Race/Ethnicity Health Disparities
Lucas A. Salas, Lauren C. Peres, Zaneta M. Thayer, Rick W. A. Smith, Yichen Guo, Wonil Chung, Jiahui Si, Liming Liang
Abstract
Health disparities correspond to differences in disease burden and mortality among socially defined population groups. Such disparities may emerge according to race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status and a variety of other social contexts, and are documented for a wide range of diseases. Here, we provide a transdisciplinary perspective on the contribution of epigenetics to the understanding of health disparities, with a special emphasis on disparities across socially defined racial/ethnic groups. Scientists in the fields of biological anthropology, bioinformatics and molecular epidemiology provide a summary of theoretical, statistical and practical considerations for conducting epigenetic health disparities research, and provide examples of successful applications from cancer research using this approach.