University of Wisconsin–Madison

ISG Updates: Spring 2021 Events Recap, Looking Ahead

On February 12, CDHA and the UW Initiative in Social Genomics (ISG) hosted the methods workshop “Integrating Biological and Social Science into Health and Aging Research.” Part of the series Advances in New Data & Big Data for Aging Research, the event was co-sponsored by three other P30 aging centers:
  • the Center for Aging and Policy Studies (Syracuse University/Cornell University/University at Albany)
  • the Center for Advancing Sociodemographic and Economic Study of Alzheimer’s Disease (University of Southern California/Stanford University/University of Texas at Austin), and
  • the Center on Aging & Population Sciences (University of Texas at Austin).
Over 50 attendees gathered from across the country virtually to listen to a panel of experts discuss their current research in biodemography:
  • Steve Cole (UCLA), “Social Regulation of Human Gene Expression”
  • Lauren Gaydosh (UT Austin), “Aging Across the Life Course: Lessons from Add Health”
  • Lauren Schmitz (UW–Madison), “Integrating Genomic and Epigenomic Data into Population Research to Illuminate Social Pathways of Aging”
  • Sam Trejo (UW–Madison), “The Phenotype Differences Model: Identifying Genetic Effects on High Blood Pressure using Incomplete Sibling Data”
  • Elliot Tucker-Drob (UT Austin), “Using Genomic SEM to Apply Social Science Models to Genetic Data”
  • Patrick Turley (USC), “The Traces of Assortative Mating on the Human Genome Reflect Human Behavior and Social Preferences”
Recordings of each presentation can be found by visiting our website or YouTube channel. ISG’s Research Group on social genomics will continue to meet this summer with weekly presentations from UW researchers and outside guests. Keep an eye on our events calendar for more information. As in previous semesters, events will be recorded and posted online. During the academic year 2021–22, CDHA and ISG will host the inaugural “Biodemography across the Life Course” conference on the UW campus. The two-day conference will combine training and research presentations that focus on the integration of biomarker data with social science theory and methods that are grounded in life course theory. Supported by a five-year grant from NIA, the conference will be held annually for the next several years. Stay tuned for more information!