Grok Nation

Dr. Jessica Duis is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Medical Genetics and Genomic Medicine in the Department of Pediatrics at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.  She recently came to Vanderbilt from the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.  She completed her training in pediatrics as well as in genetics during which time she saw adults and children with genetic disorders.  She focused her work on imprinting disorders and in particular, Prader-Willi syndrome.  Dr. Duis dedicated her research to the field of epigenetics, which studies changes gene expression without detectable changes in the sequence of the gene.  Specifically, she has focused on the inability to feel full and the sleep abnormalities that occur in individuals with PWS.  She has developed a multidisciplinary team at Vanderbilt to focus on the comprehensive and evidenced-based care of persons with Prader-Willi syndrome.  They hope to participate in clinical trials and discover new targeted therapies that are specific to PWS.  Dr. Duis has three children of her own including twins, Gracie and Henry (age 3), and Ariella (age 1).