Graduate Student
Email: jgriff55 at live.unc.edu
Phone:
Office: Alumni Hall 303A
Areas of Interest:
Aging, Life History Theory, Physical activity, Inflammation, Cardiovascular health, Psychosocial stress, Human biology, Skeletal biology
Professional Background:
Jacob received his M.S. in Forensic Anthropology in 2016 from Mercyhurst University. His Masters Thesis focused on developing new methods for skeletal age estimation using vertebral osteophytosis.
Jacob entered the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2016, focusing on Human Biology. His research has taken him to the Ecuadorian Amazon in the summer of 2017 and 2019 where he is investigating inflammaging amongst Amazonian colonists.
Jacob is studying the deterioration of physiological functions associated with advancing age due to inflammation dysregulation. He is interested in investigating the role of occupational stress on human physiological function with increasing age. More specifically, he hopes to find the effect that physical activity at different life stages has on inflammation dysregulation and the subsequent role this plays in slowing the loss of bone mineral density and reducing risk for cardiometabolic diseases.
Education:
Ph.D. Student, Anthropology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Human Biology, Ecology, and Evolution Track. 2016-Present
M.S., Anthropology, Mercyhurst University Forensic and Biological Anthropology Track. 2016
B.S., Applied Forensic Sciences (Summa cum Laude), Mercyhurst University
Concentration in Forensic Anthropology; Minor in Biology. 2014
Recent Publication:
2018 Wilbur RE, Griffin JS, Sorensen M, Furberg RD. Establishing digital biomarkers for occupational health assessment in commercial salmon fishermen: Protocol for a mixed-methods study. JMIR research protocols. December 2018;7(12):e10215.
Recent Presentations:
Griffin JS, Sorensen MV. Biological age estimation using NHANES 2005-2006: Relationship between physical activity, inflammation, and biological age. 44th Meeting of the Human Biology Association. Cleveland, OH. March 2019.
Griffin JS, Berger SM, Dent SC. Exploring pathways to skeletal phenotypes: Biomarkers of skeletal health and bone mineral density in NHANES 2003-2004. 88th Meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists. Cleveland, OH. March 2019.