Min-Ae Song, PhD

Assistant Professor - Practice
Environmental Health Sciences

Phone: 

614-247-7682

Email: 

song.991@osu.edu
1841 Neil Ave.
380C Cunz Hall
Columbus, OH 43210

Background: 

Dr. Song received her master’s degree in molecular genetics and Ph.D. in cancer epigenetics and completed her postdoctoral training in the field of molecular epidemiology in cancer research, particularly cancer prevention and tobacco regulatory sciences. Her research interests focus on multi-omics studies to integrate environmental/lifestyle factors, epigenetics, genetics, and biomarkers of exposure to understand how differences among genes and environments aid to identify biomarkers of effects and ultimately control and prevent disease. Current research includes tobacco use, diet, obesity, and various cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma, lung, breast, and colorectal cancers.

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Would you like to gain experience with epigenetic research and develop your research skillset?

https://cph.osu.edu/research-internal/environmental-epigenetics-identify...

Dr. Min-Ae Song is seeking 2-3 student volunteers to assist with various research tasks related to her epigenetic research. Her current research includes tobacco use, air pollution, diet, obesity, and various cancers. Students will gain research experience in applied sciences and participate in individual and/or lab meetings. Students who have experience using statistical tools may be involved in statistical data analyses and data management. Students will be summarizing literature relevant to projects listed below. Genomics and clinical datasets are available to be analyzed with required statistical skill sets.

How to Apply: Interested students should send (1) a brief letter explaining their educational background and interest in working on research topics listed below, and (2) a CV.

Major research interests of Dr. Song’s group:

1. Biomarkers of Effects for Tobacco Use: Omics-based biomarkers of effects, particularly epigenetics, genetics, and inflammation for various tobacco products, particularly electronic cigarettes; Development of non-invasive biomarkers reflecting the lung

 2. DNA Methylation in Obesity: Genome-wide and targeted DNA methylation in relation to obesity blood biomarkers and body composition to provide biological insights regarding epigenetic predisposition

 3. Air Pollution, DNA Methylation, Obesity, and Aging: Relationships between individuals’ genetic and epigenetic makeup, air pollution, social environmental experiences, and epigenetic aging acceleration to determine the foundations and boundaries for an epigenetics-environmental gap in obesity

 4. DNA Methylation in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Epigenetic differences among ethnic groups related to preventable liver cancer using tissues and paired plasma samples as liquid biopsies (circulating DNA methylation)

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Research Interests: 

Epigenetics, Biomarkers of Exposure, Biomarkers of effects, Cancer Risk Factors, Gene-Environment Interactions, Molecular Epidemiology, Tobacco, Cancer Prevention, Cancer, Molecular Carcinogenesis, and Multi-Omics Data
Dr. Song is the Principal Investigator on a 2015-2017 OSU-CERTS Pilot Project ($100K): Effects of Electronic Cigarette Use on the Human Lung.

Education: 

Postdoctoral fellowship in Cancer Prevention/Tobacco Regulatory Sciences, The Ohio State University, 2014-18
PhD, Cancer Epigenetics, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2014
MSc, Molecular Genetics, CHA University College of Medicine, Korea, 2006
BSc, Biology, Sungshin Women’s University, Korea, 2004

Courses: 

I am developing a new course about Environmental Epigenetics for Spring 2019.
The course will introduce the basic mechanisms of epigenetic control of gene expression, laboratory methods, and research applications of epigenetics in epidemiology and environmental health sciences.

Awards/Honors: 

2018 Nominated Junior Faculty Fellowship, Aspen Cancer Conference
2017 Publication of the year (1st Place), The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center
2017 RMATRIX-II Collaboration Pilot Award, University of Hawaii
2017 Research Award, Prevent Cancer Foundation
2015 Center of Excellence in Regulatory Tobacco Science Pilot Award, The Ohio State University
2014 FDA Tobacco Regulatory Science Fellowship
2012 Weinman Innovator Award, University of Hawaii Foundation

Selected Publications: 

Original Research

  • Song MA*, Ernst T, Tiirikainen M, Tost J, Wilkens LR, Chang L, Kolonel LN, Marchand LL, Lim U. Methylation of imprinted IGF2 regions is associated with total, visceral, and hepatic adiposity in postmenopausal women.  Epigenetics. 2018, PMID: 30277114 (* corresponding author)
  • Chung S, Kim JY, Song MA, Lee YG, Karpurapu M, Englert JA, Ballinger MN, Pabla N, Chung HY, Park GY, Christman JW. FoxO1 is a critical regulator of M2-like macrophages activation in allergic asthma. Allergy. 2018, PMID: 30288751
  • Song MA, Brasky TM, Weng DY, McElroy JP, Marian C, Higgins MJ, Ambrosone C, Spear SL, Llanos AA, Kallakury BV, Freudenheim JL,  Shields PG. Landscape of genome-wide age-related DNA methylation in breast tissue. Oncotarget. 2017, PMID: 29383109 [PMCID: PMC5777721] (Invited Research Paper)
  • Shields PG, Berman M. Brasky TM, Freudenheim JL, Mathe EA, McElroy J, Song MA, Wewers MD. A Review of Pulmonary Toxicity of Electronic Cigarettes In The Context of Smoking: A Focus On Inflammation. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2017, PMID: 28642230 [PMCID: PMC5614602]
  • Song MA, Benowitz NL, Berman M, Brasky TM, Cummings KM,  Hatsukami D, Marian C, O’Connor R, Rees V, Woroszylo C, Shields PG. Cigarette filter ventilation and its relationship to increasing rates of lung adenocarcinoma. J Natl Cancer Inst, 2017, PMID: 28525914
  • Song MA, Kwee SA, Tiirikainen M, Hernandez BY, Okimoto G, Tsai NC, Wong LL, Yu H. Comparison of genome-scale DNA methylation profiles in hepatocellular carcinoma by viral status. Epigenetics. 2016, PMID: 27248055, [PMCID: PMC4939927]
  • Song MA, Brasky TM, Marian C, Weng DY, Taslim C, Llanos AA, Dumitrescu RG, Liu Z, Mason JB, Spear SL, Kallakury BV, Freudenheim JL, Shields PG. Genetic variation in one-carbon metabolism in relation to genome-wide DNA methylation in breast tissue from healthy women. Carcinogenesis. 2016, PMID: 26961134
  • Song MA, Marian C, Brasky TM, Reisinger S, Djordjevic M, Shields PG. Chemical and Toxicological Characteristics of Conventional and Low-TSNA Moist Snuff Tobacco Products. Toxicol Lett. 2016, PMID: 26802282, [PMCID: PMC4910161]
  • Song MA, Brasky TM, Marian C, Weng DY, Taslim C, Dumitrescu RG, Llanos AA, Freudenheim JL, Shields PG. Racial differences in genome-wide methylation profiling and gene expression in breast tissues from healthy women. Epigenetics. 2015, PMID: 26680018, [PMCID: PMC4844220]
  • Ching T†, Ha J†, Song MA, Tiirikainen M, Molnar J, Berry MJ, Towner D, Garmire LX. Genome-scale hypomethylation in the cord blood DNAs associated with early onset preeclampsia. †Equal contributors. Clin Epigenetics. 2015.PMID: 25806090, [PMCID: PMC4371797] 
  • Shvetsov YB, Song MA, Cai Q, Tiirikainen M, Xiang YB, Shu XO, Yu H. Intra-individual variation and short-term temporal trend in DNA methylation of human blood. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2015, PMID: 25538225, [PMCID: PMC4355238]
  • Ching T, Song MA, Tiirikainen M, Molnar J, Berry M, Towner D, Garmire LX. Genome-wide hypermethylation coupled with promoter hypomethylation in the chorioamniotic membranes of early onset pre-eclampsia. Mol Hum Reprod. 2014, PMID: 24944161, [PMCID: PMC4131767]
  • Ling H, Spizzo R, Atlasi Y, Nicoloso M, Shimizu M, Redis RS, Nishida N, Gafà R, Song J, Guo Z, Ivan C, Barbarotto E, De Vries I, Zhang X, Ferracin M, Churchman M, van Galen JF, Beverloo BH, Shariati M, Haderk F, Estecio MR, Garcia-Manero G, Patijn GA, Gotley DC, Bhardwaj V, Shureiqi I, Sen S, Multani AS, Welsh J, Yamamoto K, Taniguchi I, Song MA, Gallinger S, Casey G, Thibodeau SN, Le Marchand L, Tiirikainen M, Mani SA, Zhang W, Davuluri RV, Mimori K, Mori M, Sieuwerts AM, Martens JW, Tomlinson I, Negrini M, Berindan-Neagoe I, Foekens JA, Hamilton SR, Lanza G, Kopetz S, Fodde R, Calin GA. CCAT2, a novel non-coding RNA mapping to 8q24, underlies metastatic progression and chromosomal instability in colon cancer. Genome Res. 2013, PMID: 23796952, [PMCID: PMC3759721]
  • Song MA, Tiirikainen M, Kwee SA, Okimoto G, Yu H, Wong LL. Elucidating the Landscape of Aberrant DNA Methylation in Hepatocellular Carcinoma. PLoS One. 2013, PMID: 23437062, [PMCID: PMC3577824]
  • Kwee S, Song MA, Cheng I, Loo LW, Tiirikainen M. Measurement of Circulating Cell-free DNA in Relation to 18F-fluorocholine PET/CT Imaging in Chemotherapy-Treated Advanced Prostate Cancer. Clin Transl Sci. 2012, PMID: 22376260, [PMCID: PMC3500883]

 

Letters and Editorials

  • Shields PG, Song MA, Freudenheim JL, Brasky TM, Mathe E, McElroy JP, Hummon AB, Wewers MD. Electronic Cigarettes and the Lung Proteome. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2018, PMID: 30153045

 

Book Chapters

  • Lim U and Song MA, DNA Methylation as a Biomarker of Aging in Epidemiologic Studies. Methods Mol Biol. 2018;1856:219-231. PMID: 30178254 (Invited Chapter)
  • Lim U and Song MA, Dietary and Lifestyle Correlates of DNA Methylation, Methods in Molecular Biology in Cancer Epigenetics, Springer Science (Human Press). Methods Mol Biol. 2012;863:359-76. PMID: 22359306 (Invited Chapter)

 

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