Overview
Dr. Murphy is a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and serves as Chief of the Division of Reproductive Sciences. As a molecular biologist with training in human epigenetics, her research interests are largely centered around the role of epigenetic modifications in health and disease.
Dr. Murphy has ongoing projects on gynecologic malignancies, including approaches to eradicate ovarian cancer cells that survive chemotherapy and later give rise to recurrent disease. Dr. Murphy is actively involved in many collaborative projects relating to the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD).
Her lab is currently working on preconception environmental exposures in males, particularly on the impact of cannabis on the sperm epigenome and the potential heritability of these effects. They are also studying the epigenetic and health effects of in utero exposures, with primary focus on children from the Newborn Epigenetics STudy (NEST), a pregnancy cohort she co-founded who were recruited from central North Carolina between 2005 and 2011. Dr. Murphy and her colleagues continue to follow NEST children to determine relationships between prenatal exposures and later health outcomes.
Dr. Murphy has ongoing projects on gynecologic malignancies, including approaches to eradicate ovarian cancer cells that survive chemotherapy and later give rise to recurrent disease. Dr. Murphy is actively involved in many collaborative projects relating to the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD).
Her lab is currently working on preconception environmental exposures in males, particularly on the impact of cannabis on the sperm epigenome and the potential heritability of these effects. They are also studying the epigenetic and health effects of in utero exposures, with primary focus on children from the Newborn Epigenetics STudy (NEST), a pregnancy cohort she co-founded who were recruited from central North Carolina between 2005 and 2011. Dr. Murphy and her colleagues continue to follow NEST children to determine relationships between prenatal exposures and later health outcomes.
Current Appointments & Affiliations
Associate Professor in Obstetrics and Gynecology
·
2014 - Present
Obstetrics and Gynecology, Reproductive Sciences,
Obstetrics and Gynecology
Chief, Division of Reproductive Sciences in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
·
2017 - Present
Obstetrics and Gynecology, Reproductive Sciences,
Obstetrics and Gynecology
Associate Professor in Pathology
·
2012 - Present
Pathology,
Clinical Science Departments
Associate Professor in the Division of Environmental Natural Science
·
2025 - Present
Environmental Natural Science,
Nicholas School of the Environment
Member of the Duke Cancer Institute
·
1998 - Present
Duke Cancer Institute,
Institutes and Centers
Recent Publications
Differential methylation patterns in cord blood associated with prenatal exposure to neighborhood crime: an epigenome-wide association study and regional analysis.
Journal Article Epigenetics · December 2025 Exposure to prenatal social stressors during pregnancy is associated with adverse birth outcomes and has been linked to epigenetic changes in DNA methylation (DNAm); however, less understood is the effect of neighborhood-level stressors like crime during p ... Full text Link to item CiteShort-chain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances associate with elevated alanine aminotransferase: Cross-sectional analysis results from the STRIVE cohort.
Journal Article Environ Res · June 11, 2025 BACKGROUND: The impact of short-chain, low molecular weight polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and long-chain, high molecular weight PFAS on elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT) remains unclear. Additionally, demographic and behavioral factors influencin ... Full text Link to item CiteEpigenome-wide differential methylation and differential variability as predictors of high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN2+).
Journal Article Am J Epidemiol · April 8, 2025 CpG site methylation patterns have potential to improve differentiation of high-grade screening-detected cervical abnormalities. We assessed CpG differential methylation (DM) and differential variability (DV) in high-grade (CIN2+) vs low-grade (≤ CIN1) les ... Full text Link to item CiteRecent Grants
Duke-NCCU Interdisciplinary Postdoctoral Training Program in Child Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Conditions Program (DN-IPT)
Inst. Training Prgm or CMEPreceptor · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2024 - 2029Duke University Program in Environmental Health
Inst. Training Prgm or CMECo-Principal Investigator · Awarded by National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences · 2019 - 2029Duke KURe Program
Inst. Training Prgm or CMEMentor · Awarded by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases · 2013 - 2028View All Grants
Recent Artistic Works
How Epigenetics Influences the Risk of Disease
Digital Media January 1, 2014 Germline ExposuresView All Artistic Works
Education, Training & Certifications
Wake Forest University ·
1998
Ph.D.
University of North Carolina, Charlotte ·
1992
B.A.