Megan M Marron

Contributions to Public Health

• Metabolomics of integrated markers of aging: My on-going research is focused on understanding metabolic alterations that occur to compensate during aging-related physiologic challenges, but by doing so cause dysregulation elsewhere. Using metabolomics, I was able to better characterize aging-related phenotypes: vigor to frailty and high vs. low walking ability among community-dwelling older adults. This research is important because it has the potential to provide novel therapeutic targets for prevention or intervention strategies to preserve physical functioning with aging.
  • Marron MM, Harris TB, Boudreau RM, Clish CB, Moore SC, Murphy RA, Murthy VL, Sanders JL, Shah RV, Tseng GC, Wendell SG, Zmuda JM, Newman AB. Metabolites associated with vigor to frailty among community-dwelling older black men. Metabolites. 2019. 9(5):83.
  • Marron MM, Wendell SG, Boudreau RM, Clish CB, Santanasto AJ, Tseng GC, Zmuda JM, Newman AB. Metabolites associated with walking ability among the oldest old from the CHS All Stars study. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2020. 75(12):2371-2378.
• Developing healthy aging phenotypes: I have worked with world-renowned aging epidemiologists to develop several healthy aging phenotypes in the Long Life Family Study. I led the development of a healthy blood pressure phenotype and healthy metabolic phenotype and others developed healthy pulmonary, memory, and grip strength phenotypes. Using the healthy aging phenotypes, I found correlations between phenotypes were weak, suggesting exceptional health across multiple systems did not cluster within families and that multiple pathways to reaching longevity exist.
  • Marron MM, Miljkovic I, Boudreau RM, Christensen K, Feitosa MF, Lee JH, Sebastiani P, Thyagarajan B, Wojczynski MK, Zmuda JM, Newman AB. A novel healthy metabolic phenotype developed among a cohort of families enriched for longevity. Metabolism. 2019. 94:28-38.
  • Marron MM, Wojczynski MK, Minster RL, Boudreau RM, Sebastiani P, Cosentino S, Thyagarajan B, Ukraintseva SV, Schupf N, Christensen K, Feitosa M, Perls T, Zmuda JM, Newman AB. Heterogeneity of healthy aging: comparing long-lived families across five healthy aging phenotypes of blood pressure, memory, pulmonary function, grip strength, and metabolism. Geroscience. 2019. 41(4)383-393.
• Racial disparities in health with aging: I am interested in examining racial differences in aging-related outcomes and determining modifiable factors that explain disparities and could inform interventions aimed at promoting health among all. Thus, my on-going research involves under-studied populations of African ancestry. For example, I determined Black vs. White participants died more from cancer, kidney disease, stroke, and cardiovascular disease, where worse physical and cognitive performance explained most of the differences in deaths from kidney disease, stroke, and cardiovascular disease
  • Marron MM, Ives DG, Boudreau RM, Harris TB, Newman AB. Racial Differences in Cause‐Specific Mortality Between Community‐Dwelling Older Black and White Adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 2018. 66(10):1980-6. doi:10.1111/jgs.15534 PMCID:PMC6366626.
  • Marron MM, Moore SC, Wendell SG, Boudreau RM, Miljkovic I, Sekikawa A, Newman AB. Using lipid profiling to better characterize metabolic differences in apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype among community-dwelling older Black men. Geroscience. 2021. [Online ahead of print]. doi: 10.1007/s11357-021-00382-6.
• Metabolic correlates of aging-related differences in body composition: Through training aims of my current Career Development Award, I have gained expertise in aging-related changes to body composition. This has led to examining various targeted metabolites in relation to body composition among older adults. This is important because changes in body composition are likely important mediators of cellular metabolism and aging-related health outcomes, where a further understanding of these relationships could shed light on different points to target to alter the progression of disease.
  • Marron MM, Allison M, Kanaya AM, Larsen B, Wood AC, Herrington D, Greenland P, Miljkovic I. Associations Between Lipoprotein Subfractions and Area and Density of Abdominal Muscle and Intermuscular Adipose Tissue: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis. Front Physiol. 2021. 12:713048. doi:10.3389/fphys.2021.713048. PMCID:PMC8502976.
  • Marron MM, Orwoll ES, Cawthon PM, Lane NE, Newman AB, Cauley JA, Osteoporotic Fractures in Men (MrOS) Study Research Group. Oxylipins Associated with D3-Creatine Muscle Mass/Weight and Physical Performance among Community-Dwelling Older Men. Int J Mol Sci. 2022. 23(21):12857. doi:10.3390/ijms232112857. PMCID:PMC9655465.

MyBibliography