Frank D. Gilliland

Frank D. Gilliland, MD, PhD, is the Hastings Professor of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. His expertise spans air pollution research, respiratory health, cancer epidemiology, and gene-environment interactions. He has authored over 190 papers and led major epidemiological studies. Educated at the University of Virginia (MD), University of Minnesota (MPH, PhD in environmental epidemiology), and with board certifications in emergency and environmental medicine, Dr. Gilliland previously taught at the University of New Mexico, focusing on occupational/environmental determinants of respiratory and cancer outcomes. His research emphasizes longitudinal studies assessing environmental exposures' effects on child health, asthma, metabolic health, and public health responses to pandemics like COVID-19.

• Education: MD from University of Virginia; MPH and PhD in Environmental Epidemiology from University of Minnesota
• Board Certifications: Emergency Medicine, Environmental/Occupational Medicine

Research interests include epigenetic influences on child development, PFAS exposure effects, air pollution's role in cardiometabolic and respiratory diseases, and disparities in environmental health outcomes. His articles highlight mechanisms linking air pollution to asthma exacerbations, epigenetic timing effects on development, and the interplay between environmental contaminants and metabolic pathways.

Grants and advising: Extensive NIH-funded research on environmental health, including the MADRES pregnancy cohort study and studies on lung development impacts of air quality improvements. His work bridges molecular epidemiology with population-level interventions.

Labs/Teams: Leads USC-based environmental epidemiology research teams, collaborating on initiatives like the Children’s Health Study and the Pregnancy And Childhood Epigenetics Consortium.