research interests.

Despite the availability of safe and effective contraceptive methods for women on the market, many are not suitable for or acceptable for all women at all stages of their reproductive lives. Challenges with current hormonal contraceptive methods include undesirable side effects for some individuals, including those with clotting disorders or estrogen-responsive cancers, and social and religious norms related to associated uterine bleeding. As such, there remains a need to develop a non-hormonal contraceptive with improved tolerability as a suitable alternative for women worldwide.  

As such, my research interests focus on using physiologically relevant biological assays and identification of novel targets to discover new drugs for female non-hormonal contraception. As part of the Ovarian Contraceptive Discovery Initiative (OCDI), a multi-institutional program funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, I work on several coordinated projects focused on contraceptive drug discovery using two parallel platforms: (1) phenotypic screening using complementary, ex vivo systems that recapitulate fundamental processes in the ovary, and (2) target-based screening using genomic sequencing and bioinformatic pipelines to determine key factors of ovarian function.

My other research interests focus on the evaluation of ovarian morphology as a biomarker of physiological conditions and disturbances. Ovarian morphology is clinically evaluated using ultrasonography and is used to assess potential outcomes during assisted reproductive technologies (ART), and gynecological disorders such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). However, there remains an opportunity to more accurately assess changes in the ovary in order to help clinicians provide better diagnosis, evaluation and treatment in women’s health.

During my graduate research, my projects centered on the comprehensive evaluation of ovarian markers in ultrasonography to assess reproductive and metabolic dysfunction in PCOS. As part of this work, I have contributed and updated clinical recommendations on the evaluation of PCOS, including the 2023 International Guideline on the Diagnosis & Management of PCOS.

publications.

  • Pea J, Bryan J, Wan C, Oldfield AL, Ganga K, Carter FE, Johnson LM, and Lujan ME. (2023) Ultrasonographic criteria in the diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome: a systematic review and diagnostic meta-analysis. Human Reprododuction Update 6:dmad027. https://doi.org/10.1093/humupd/dmad027

  • Teede et al.* (2023) International Evidence-based Guideline for the Assessment and Management of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome 2023. Monash University. https://doi.org/10.26180/24003834.v1

    • * Contributor to the Guideline Development Group (GDG) focused on the ultrasonographic criteria of on PCOS diagnosis

  • Vanden Brink H, Pea J, and Lujan ME. (2021) Ultrasonographic markers of ovarian morphology capture nutritional and metabolic influences of the reproductive axis: implications for biomarker development in ovulatory disorders. Current Opinions in Biotechnology 70: 41-47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copbio.2020.10.008

  • Toledo M, Sun X, Brieño-Enríquez MA, Raghavan V, Gray S, Pea J, et al. (2019) A mutation in the endonuclease domain of mouse MLH3 reveals novel roles for MutLγ during crossover formation in meiotic prophase I. PLoS Genetics 15(6): e1008177. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1008177

select posters & presentations.

  • “A phenotypic drug screening pipeline of mouse oocyte maturation for the identification of compounds targeting meiotic progression”

    • Upper Midwest Summit for Reproductive Medicine. October 2023.

  • “The Ovarian Contraceptive Discovery Initiative: A Collaborative, Multi-Disciplinary Infrastructure Focused on Developing Female Non-Hormonal Contraceptives”

    • Grand Challenges 2023. October 2023.

  • “3D Ovarian Markers Outperform 2D Ultrasonography and Anti-Müllerian Hormone in the Diagnosis of PCOS”

    • Annual Meeting of the Androgen Excess & PCOS (AE-PCOS) Society 2021. October 2022.

  • “Ultrasonographic Criteria in the Diagnosis of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis”

    • Endocrine Society (ENDO) 2022. June 2022.

  • “Convolutional Neural Networks and Machine Learning in the Identification of Ultrasonographic Features of Ovarian Morphology”

    • Association for Clinical & Translational Sciences (ACTS) 2022. April 2022.

  • “ComSciCon NY 2021: Online Community-Based Learning Approaches for SciComm Training”

    • 2022 American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Annual Meeting. February 2022.

  • “Variable Discriminatory Power of Ovarian Markers Across Lifespan Warrant Age-Specific PCOS Criteria”

    • Annual Meeting of the Androgen Excess & PCOS (AE-PCOS) Society 2021. November 2021.

  • “Recruitment of Structure-Specific Endonucleases (SSEs) for Mediating Crossover Formation in Mammalian Meiosis”

    • Cornell Genome Instability Symposium. June 2019.