Early-life factors shaping heart health in HIV-exposed and unexposed children in South Africa
Official title: Early life determinants of cardiometabolic health from birth to adolescence amongst HIV-exposed and unexposed South African children
Funded at Hartford Hospital · NIH-11474038 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project follows children from birth through adolescence to understand how being exposed to HIV before birth affects their metabolic and heart health over time.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Hartford Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Hartford, United States) |
| Project start | August 18, 2022 |
| Project end | July 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $323,492 |
| NIH project number | 3R01HD108048-05S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11474038 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children born to mothers with HIV, both HEU and HU, followed from birth through adolescence.
✕Less likely to help
Children not in this birth cohort or without HIV exposure history.
What this research studies
Researchers will use data from a long-running South African birth cohort to compare HIV-exposed-uninfected and HIV-unexposed children. They will track metabolic markers and inflammatory signals from infancy to early adolescence and see how infections in early life influence these pathways. By linking these biological changes to later cardiometabolic outcomes, the study aims to reveal mechanisms that increase heart-disease risk in HEU children and identify potential windows for prevention.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Understanding the pathways could lead to earlier interventions to reduce cardiometabolic risk in HEU children as they grow.
How similar studies have gone: Prior research has shown metabolic differences linked to early-life infections and inflammation in HEU children, supporting a potential trajectory toward cardiometabolic risk.
Where this research is happening
-
Hartford Hospital
Hartford, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Pellowski, Jennifer Ann — Hartford Hospital
- Study coordinator: Pellowski, Jennifer Ann
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.