Connie J. Mulligan

Connie J. Mulligan is a Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Florida (UF), with affiliations to the Center for African Studies and the Genetics Institute. She has led a distinguished research program since 2005, focusing on molecular genetics, epigenetics, and biocultural approaches to health disparities. Her work bridges evolutionary anthropology and public health, supported by continuous NSF grants since 2005.

Educational Background:

• Ph.D. in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from Yale University (1990)
• B.S. in Honors Biology and Chemistry from University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana (1983)

Mulligan's research investigates how childhood adversity, maternal stress, and racial discrimination interact with genetic/epigenetic factors to influence health outcomes. Her team studies populations in Tallahassee (hypertension in African Americans), DRC (intergenerational stress effects), and Jordan (Syrian refugee resilience). She pioneered biocultural frameworks showing gene-environment interactions in diseases.

Her 15 most recent publications span three major research themes: (1) epigenetic mechanisms linking maternal stress to neonatal health (2016-2020), (2) genetic ancestry analysis in African/Ethiopian populations (2009-2011), and (3) molecular anthropology of prehistoric migrations (2008-2009). Notably, she discovered gene-specific DNA methylation patterns in war-affected DRC mothers and Science-featured refugee resilience research.

Scientific Recognition:

• UF Term Professorship (2017-2018)
• President of American Association of Anthropological Genetics (2017-2018)
• Senior Editor at American Journal of Physical Anthropology
• Workshop Organizer on Social & Behavioral Epigenetics (2014-2019)

As an advisor, she has mentored 10 PhD candidates (as chair), 9 Masters students, and >50 undergraduates (>200 semesters total). Her lab collaborates with Yale, Hashemite University, and Washington University, focusing on trauma epigenetics and global health research.

Her work appears in Nature, Science, and PLoS ONE, with media coverage in National Geographic, The Atlantic, and NPR. She co-organized NSF workshops on data sharing in biological anthropology and serves on editorial boards of major journals.