Grantee Research Project Results
Center for Research on Early Childhood Exposure and Development in Puerto Rico
EPA Grant Number: R836155Center: Center for Research on Early Childhood Exposure and Development in Puerto Rico
Center Director: Alshawabkeh, Akram
Title: Center for Research on Early Childhood Exposure and Development in Puerto Rico
Investigators: Alshawabkeh, Akram
Current Investigators: Alshawabkeh, Akram , Suh, Helen H. , Cordero, Jose , Manjourides, Justin , Zimmerman, Emily , Gu, April , Meeker, John D.
Institution: Northeastern University
EPA Project Officer: Callan, Richard
Project Period: September 1, 2015 through August 31, 2019 (Extended to August 31, 2022)
Project Amount: $2,099,537
RFA: Children's Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Research Centers (2014) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Human Health , Children's Health
Objective:
The overall goal of this Center is to understand the impact of a mixture of environmental exposures and modifying factors on fetal and early childhood health and development in the children of the heavily-contaminated northern coast of Puerto Rico – an underserved, highly-exposed, and low-income population with significant health disparities.
Specific Aim 1: Capture the impacts of pollutant exposures (both alone and in combination) that occur through multiple exposure routes and biological pathways on fetal and early childhood health and development.
Specific Aim 2: Evaluate how psychosocial risk factors (e.g. socioeconomic status and maternal stress) may modify these effects.
Specific Aim 3: Elucidate biological mechanisms that may explain mechanistic pathways and mediate these relationships.
Approach:
To achieve this timely and significant goal, CRECE has developed an innovative and scientifically distinct program that leverages the ongoing cohort study of the PROTECT NIEHS Superfund Research Center; this cohort is following 1800 pregnant Puerto Rican women through childbirth to investigate the relationship between groundwater contamination and the island’s extremely high preterm birth rate. CRECE will initiate a follow-up study of 600 infants born to the PROTECT cohort, for whom a rich prenatal dataset and biological samples already exists, following them from birth to age four. Through a unique and holistic source-to-outcome strategy incorporating three interrelated and transdisciplinary research projects and three cores, CRECE will (1) capture the impacts of pollutant exposures (both alone and in combination) that occur through multiple exposure routes and biological pathways on fetal and early childhood health and development, (2) evaluate how psychosocial risk factors (e.g. socioeconomic status and maternal stress) may modify these effects, and (3) elucidate biological mechanisms that may explain mechanistic pathways and mediate these relationships. The CRECE interdisciplinary team includes environmental epidemiologists, pediatricians, environmental scientists/engineers, exposure scientists, sociologists, social workers, biostatisticians, toxicologists, and communication neuroscientists (many of whom have previously collaborated through PROTECT).
CRECE will answer important research questions: What are the combined effects of intrauterine and early childhood exposure to multiple pollutants on children’s health and development in a highly exposed population? What are the mechanisms by which these effects occur? How do psychosocial factors modify the effects of environmental chemical exposures? Can exposure biomarkers be developed to capture multipollutant and multi-pathway exposures for health effect investigations? The answers to these questions, along with the innovative tools and methods developed to answer them, will advance the science of children’s environmental health by improving our understanding of the effects of the total environment on at-risk as well as general populations with multiple exposures. The proposed work will inform future clinical intervention, risk assessment, and policy-setting efforts for both this at-risk, vulnerable population and the U.S. as a whole.
Rationale:
Exposure to multiple chemicals in the environment during critical fetal and childhood development periods is an important yet understudied area of public health, particularly when coupled with psychosocial risk factors that may modify the effects of these exposures. To address this gap, the Center for Research on Early Childhood Exposure and Development in Puerto Rico (CRECE) will study the impact of a mixture of environmental exposures and modifying factors on fetal and early childhood health and development in the children of the heavily-contaminated northern coast of Puerto Rico – an underserved, highly-exposed, and low-income population with significant health disparities.
Journal Articles: 47 Displayed | Download in RIS Format
| Other center views: | All 68 publications | 47 publications in selected types | All 47 journal articles |
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Aker AM, Watkins DJ, Johns LE, Ferguson KK, Soldin OP, Anzalota Del Toro LV, Alshawabkeh AN, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Phenols and parabens in relation to reproductive and thyroid hormones in pregnant women. Environmental Research 2016;151:30-37. |
R836155 (2017) R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) |
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Aker AM, Johns L, McElrath TF, Cantonwine DE, Mukherjee B, Meeker JD. Associations between maternal phenol and paraben urinary biomarkers and maternal hormones during pregnancy: a repeated measures study. Environment International 2018;113:341-349. |
R836155 (2018) R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Aker AM, Ferguson KK, Rosario ZY, Mukherjee B, Alshawabkeh AN, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. The associations between prenatal exposure to triclocarban, phenols and parabens with gestational age and birth weight in northern Puerto Rico. Environmental Research 2019;169:41-51. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Aung MT, Johns LE, Ferguson KK, Mukherjee B, McElrath TF, Meeker JD. Thyroid hormone parameters during pregnancy in relation to urinary bisphenol A concentrations: a repeated measures study. Environment International 2017;104:33-40. |
R836155 (2018) R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Aung MT, Ferguson KK, Cantonwine DE, McElrath TF, Meeker JD. Preterm birth in relation to the bisphenol A replacement, bisphenol S, and other phenols and parabens. Environmental Research 2019;169:131-138. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Bedrosian LD, Ferguson KK, Cantonwine DE, McElrath TF, Meeker JD. Urinary phthalate metabolite concentrations in relation to levels of circulating matrix metalloproteinases in pregnant women. Science of the Total Environment 2018;613-614:1349-1352. |
R836155 (2018) R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Cantonwine DE, Ferguson KK, Mukherjee B, McElrath TF, Meeker JD. Urinary bisphenol A levels during pregnancy and risk of preterm birth. Environmental Health Perspectives 2015;123(9):895-901. |
R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) |
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Cathey A, Ferguson KK, McElrath TF, Cantonwine DE, Pace G, Alshawabkeh A, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Distribution and predictors of urinary polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon metabolites in two pregnancy cohort studies. Environmental Pollution 2018;232:556-562. |
R836155 (2018) R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Ferguson KK, Cantonwine DE, McElrath TF, Mukherjee B, Meeker JD. Repeated measures analysis of associations between urinary bisphenol-A concentrations and biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress in pregnancy. Reproductive Toxicology 2016;66:93-98. |
R836155 (2017) R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) |
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Ferguson KK, Meeker JD, Cantonwine DE, Chen Y-H, Mukherjee B, McElrath TF. Urinary phthalate metabolite and bisphenol A associations with ultrasound and delivery indices of fetal growth. Environment International 2016;94:531-537. |
R836155 (2017) R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) R834513 (Final) R835436 (2016) R835436 (2017) |
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Ferguson KK, McElrath TF, Pace GG, Weller D, Zeng L, Pennathur S, Cantonwine DE, Meeker JD. Urinary polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon metabolite associations with biomarkers of inflammation, angiogenesis, and oxidative stress in pregnant women. Environmental Science & Technology 2017;51(8):4652-4660. |
R836155 (2018) R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Honda T, Henry E, Corlin L, Kirwa K, Alshawabkeh A, Varshavsky J, Kennedy W, Cordero J, Vega C, Pabon Z, Meeker J, Suh H. Associations Between Ambient PM2.5 and Thyroid Hormones in Pregnant Persons in Puerto Rico. TOXICS 2025;13(1) |
R836155 (Final) |
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Johns LE, Ferguson KK, Meeker JD. Relationships between urinary phthalate metabolite and bisphenol A concentrations and vitamin D levels in U.S. adults: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), 2005-2010. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 2016;101(11):4062-4069. |
R836155 (2017) R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) |
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Lan J, Gou N, Rahman SM, Gao C, He M, Gu AZ. A quantitative toxicogenomics assay for high-throughput and mechanistic genotoxicity assessment and screening of environmental pollutants. Environmental Science & Technology 2016;50(6):3202-3214. |
R836155 (2020) R836155C002 (2016) |
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Lewis RC, Johns LE, Meeker JD. Serum biomarkers of exposure to perfluoroalkyl substances in relation to serum testosterone and measures of thyroid function among adults and adolescents from NHANES 2011-2012. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2015;12(6):6098-6114. |
R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) R835436 (2014) R835436 (2015) R835436 (2017) |
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Watkins DJ, Fortenberry GZ, Sanchez BN, Barr DB, Panuwet P, Schnaas L, Osorio-Valencia E, Solano-Gonzalez M, Ettinger AS, Hernandez-Avila M, Hu H, Tellez-Rojo MM, Meeker JD. Urinary 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-PBA) levels among pregnant women in Mexico City: distribution and relationships with child neurodevelopment. Environmental Research 2016;147:307-313. |
R836155 (2017) R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) R835436 (2015) R835436 (2016) R835436 (2017) |
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Yuan Y, Meeker JD, Ferguson KK. Serum polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) concentrations in relation to biomarkers of oxidative stress and inflammation: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003-2004. Science of the Total Environment 2017;575:400-405. |
R836155 (2017) R836155 (2018) R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) |
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Watkins DJ, Ferguson KK, Anzalota Del Toro LV, Alshawabkeh AN, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Associations between urinary phenol and paraben concentrations and markers of oxidative stress and inflammation among pregnant women in Puerto Rico. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 2015;218(2):212-219. |
R836155 (2020) R836155C003 (2017) |
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Ashrap P, Watkins DJ, Calafat AM, Ye X, Rosario Z, Brown P, Velez-Vega CM, Alshawabkeh A, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Elevated concentrations of urinary triclocarban, phenol and paraben among pregnant women in northern Puerto Rico:predictors and trends. Environment International 2018;121:990-1002. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Ferguson KK, Meeker JD, Cantonwine DE, Mukherjee B, Pace GG, Weller D, McElrath TF. Environmental phenol associations with ultrasound and delivery measures of fetal growth. Environment International 2018;112:243-250. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Lan J, Rahman SM, Gou N, Jiang T, Plewa MJ, Alshawabkeh A, Gu AZ. Genotoxicity assessment of drinking water disinfection byproducts by DNA damage and repair pathway profiling analysis. Environmental Science & Technology 2018;52(11):6565-6675. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Zhang Y, Gu AZ, Xie S, Li X, Cen T, Li D, Chen J. Nano-metal oxides induce antimicrobial resistance via radical-mediated mutagenesis. Environment International 2018;121:1162-1171. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Aker AM, Ferguson KK, Rosario ZY, Mukherjee B, Alshawabkeh AN, Calafat AM, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. A repeated measures study of phenol, paraben and Triclocarban urinary biomarkers and circulating maternal hormones during gestation in the Puerto Rico PROTECT cohort. Environmental Health 2019;18(1):28. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Li D, Gu AZ. Antimicrobial resistance:a new threat from disinfection byproducts and disinfection of drinking water?. Current Opinion in Environmental Science & Health 2019;7:83-91. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Aung MT, Ferguson KK, Cantonwine DE, Bakulski KM, Mukherjee B, Loch-Caruso R, McElrath TF, Meeker JD. Associations between maternal plasma measurements of inflammatory markers and urinary levels of phenols and parabens during pregnancy:a repeated measures study. Science of The Total Environment 2019;650:1131-1140. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Eick SM, Meeker JD, Brown P, Swartzendruber A, Rios-McConnell R, Shen Y, Milne GL, Vega CV, Rosario Z, Alshawabkeh A, Cordero JF. Associations between socioeconomic status, psychosocial stress, and urinary levels of 8-iso-prostaglandin-F2α during pregnancy in Puerto Rico. Free Radical Biology and Medicine 2019;143:95-100. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Cathey AL, Watkins D, Rosario ZY, Vélez C, Alshawabkeh AN, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Associations of phthalates and phthalate replacements with CRH and other hormones among pregnant women in puerto rico. Journal of the Endocrine Society 2019;3(6):1127-49. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Ferguson KK, Rosario Z, McElrath TF, Vélez Vega C, Cordero JF, Alshawabkeh A, Meeker JD. Demographic risk factors for adverse birth outcomes in Puerto Rico in the PROTECT cohort. PloS one 2019;14(6):e0217770.. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Ferguson KK, Rosen EM, Rosario Z, Feric Z, Calafat AM, McElrath TF, Vega CV, Cordero JF, Alshawabkeh A, Meeker JD. Environmental phthalate exposure and preterm birth in the PROTECT birth cohort. Environment international 2019;132:105099. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Boss J, Mukherjee B, Ferguson KK, Aker A, Alshawabkeh AN, Cordero JF, Meeker JD, Kim S. Estimating outcome-exposure associations when exposure biomarker detection limits vary across batches. Epidemiology 2019;30(5):746-55. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Kirwa K, McConnell-Rios R, Manjourides J, Cordero J, Alshawabekeh A, Suh HH. Low birth weight and PM2. 5 in Puerto Rico. Environmental epidemiology 2019;3(4). |
R836155 (2020) |
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Aung MT, Yu Y, Ferguson KK, Cantonwine DE, Zeng L, McElrath TF, Pennathur S, Mukherjee B, Meeker JD. Prediction and associations of preterm birth and its subtypes with eicosanoid enzymatic pathways and inflammatory markers. Scientific reports 2019;9(1):1-7. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Xie S, Gu AZ, Cen T, Li D, Chen J. The effect and mechanism of urban fine particulate matter (PM2. 5) on horizontal transfer of plasmid-mediated antimicrobial resistance genes. Science of the Total Environment 2019;683:116-23. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Ingle ME, Watkins D, Rosario Z, VélezVega CM, Calafat AM, Ospina M, Ferguson KK, Cordero JF, Alshawabkeh A, Meeker JD. An exploratory analysis of urinary organophosphate ester metabolites and oxidative stress among pregnant women in Puerto Rico. Science of the Total Environment 2020;703:134798. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Manjourides J, Zimmerman E, Watkins DJ, Carpenito T, Vélez-Vega CM, Huerta-Montañez G, Rosario Z, Ayala I, Vergara C, Feric Z, Ondras M. Cohort profile:Center for Research on Early Childhood Exposure and Development in Puerto Rico. BMJ open 2020;10(7):e036389. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Lin Y, Sevillano-Rivera M, Jiang T, Li G, Cotto I, Vosloo S, Carpenter CM, Larese-Casanova P, Giese RW, Helbling DE, Padilla IY. Impact of Hurricane Maria on Drinking Water Quality in Puerto Rico. Environmental Science & Technology 2020;54(15):9495-509. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Welton M, Vega CM, Murphy CB, Rosario Z, Torres H, Russell E, Brown P, Huerta-Montanez G, Watkins D, Meeker JD, Alshawabkeh A. Impact of Hurricanes Irma and Maria on Puerto Rico Maternal and Child Health Research Programs. Maternal and child health journal 2020;24(1):22-9. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Aker A, McConnell RE, Loch-Caruso R, Park SK, Mukherjee B, Rosario ZY, Vélez-Vega CM, Huerta-Montanez G, Alshawabkeh AN, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Interactions between chemicals and non-chemical stressors:the modifying effect of life events on the association between triclocarban, phenols and parabens with gestational length in a Puerto Rican cohort. Science of The Total Environment 2020;708:134719. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Eick SM, Ferguson KK, Milne GL, Rios-McConnell R, Vélez-Vega C, Rosario Z, Alshawabkeh A, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Repeated measures of urinary oxidative stress biomarkers and preterm birth in Puerto Rico. Free Radical Biology and Medicine 2020;146:299-305. |
R836155 (2020) |
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Zimmerman E, Watkins DJ, Huerta-Montanez G, Pabon ZR, Feric Z, Manjourides J, Velez-Vega CM, Figueroa A, Hines M, Martens A, Cordero J. Associations of gestational phthalate exposure and non-nutritive suck among infants from the Puerto Rico Testsite for Exploring Contamination Threats (PROTECT) birth cohort study. Environment international 2021;152:106480. |
R836155 (2021) |
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Jiang T, Lin Y, Amadei CA, Gou N, Rahman SM, Lan J, Vecitis CD, Gu AZ. Comparative and mechanistic toxicity assessment of structure-dependent toxicity of carbon-based nanomaterials. Journal of Hazardous Materials 2021;418:126282. |
R836155 (2021) |
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Aung MT, Ashrap P, Watkins DJ, Mukherjee B, Rosario Z, Vélez-Vega CM, Alshawabkeh AN, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Maternal lipidomic signatures in relation to spontaneous preterm birth and large-for-gestational age neonates. Scientific reports 2021;11(1):1-1. |
R836155 (2021) |
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Morton S, Honda T, Zimmerman E, Kirwa K, Huerta-Montanez G, Martens A, Hines M, Ondras M, Eum KD, Cordero JF, Alshawabekeh A. Non-nutritive suck and airborne metal exposures among Puerto Rican infants. Science of The Total Environment 2021;789:148008. |
R836155 (2021) |
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Silver MK, Fernandez J, Tang J, McDade A, Sabino J, Rosario Z, Vélez Vega C, Alshawabkeh A, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Prenatal exposure to glyphosate and its environmental degradate, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), and preterm birth:a nested case–control study in the PROTECT cohort (Puerto Rico). Environmental health perspectives 2021;129(5):057011. |
R836155 (2021) |
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Kirwa K, Feric Z, Manjourides J, Alshawabekeh A, Vega CM, Cordero JF, Meeker JD, Suh HH. Preterm birth and PM2. 5 in Puerto Rico:evidence from the PROTECT birth cohort. Environmental Health 2021;20(1):1-1.. |
R836155 (2021) |
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Ashrap P, Aker A, Watkins DJ, Mukherjee B, Rosario-Pabón Z, Vélez-Vega CM, Alshawabkeh A, Cordero JF, Meeker JD. Psychosocial status modifies the effect of maternal blood metal and metalloid concentrations on birth outcomes. Environment International 2021;149:106418. |
R836155 (2021) |
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Muenter MM, Aiken A, Akanji JO, Baig S, Bellou S, Carlson A, Conway C, Cowell CM, DeLateur NA, Hester A, Joshi C. The response of Escherichia coli to the alkylating agents chloroacetaldehyde and styrene oxide. Mutation Research/Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Mutagenesis 2019;840:1-10. |
R836155 (2019) R836155 (2020) |
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Progress and Final Reports:
Subprojects under this Center: (EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
R836155C001 Air Pollution Impacts on Neonatal and Early Childhood Development
R836155C002 Toxicogenomics-based Mechanistic Multimedia Exposure Assessment and Child Development
R836155C003 Biomarker Epidemiology of In Utero Environmental Exposures and Child Development
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.
Project Research Results
- Final Report
- 2021 Progress Report
- 2020 Progress Report
- 2019 Progress Report
- 2018 Progress Report
- 2017 Progress Report
- 2016 Progress Report
47 journal articles for this center