The NIH National Institute of Aging has awarded Jinyoung Kim an R21 grant ($226,500) for her study titled, "Sleep Depth and Circadian Genes as Potential Markers to Reflect Symptom Variation and Early Risk of Alzheimer's Disease in Shift Workers."
The aim of her study is to investigate the potential of objective sleep quality measurements and epigenetic alterations in circadian genes as biomarkers to determine the individual differences in adapting to shift work and to predict the risk for future cognitive impairment. Dr. Kim and her team plan to build a cohort comprising both active and retired shift workers in Las Vegas areas and conduct comprehensive assessments of their daytime and nighttime sleep patterns, medical histories, symptoms, and biomarkers. The research outcomes will have a significant impact on public health by guiding the development of personalized, optimized biobehavioral interventions aimed at preventing adverse health consequences among shift workers early in their careers.
