Congratulations to Drs. Mary L. Marazita & Seth Weinberg who have received a $1,094,349 subaward from the Department of Human Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh, awarded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) & National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
Dr. Mary L. Marazita, distinguished professor, and Dr. Seth Weinberg, associate professor, and co-directors of the Center for Craniofacial and Dental Genetics (CCDG) are both in the Pitt Dental Medicine Department of Craniofacial Sciences. The grant, entitled “Investigating the role of genes, maternal exposures, and interactions on orofacial clefts,” will support research that will analyze existing and publicly available data to identify genetic variants that either directly influence the risk of orofacial clefts (OFC) and subtypes, or moderate the effects of maternal smoking, alcohol, and multivitamin/folate exposures during pregnancy. Results from this study will enhance our understanding of OFC biology by filling gaps in our knowledge of the genetic contributors and interacting maternal exposures influencing OFCs, and may ultimately be useful for risk and recurrence prediction and inform preventive or therapeutic interventions.