Gestational arsenic exposure and moms' heart health
Official title: Effect of gestational arsenic exposure on maternal cardiovascular health
Funded at Johns Hopkins University · NIH-11448126 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This grant studies how exposure to arsenic during pregnancy might affect a mother’s heart health, with findings that could help prevent serious pregnancy-related heart problems.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Johns Hopkins University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baltimore, United States) |
| Project start | August 28, 2026 |
| Project end | June 30, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $787,370 |
| NIH project number | 1R01ES038115-01A1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11448126 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Women of childbearing age or pregnant individuals with known arsenic exposure who are interested in understanding environmental risks to heart health may benefit from future findings and guidance.
✕Less likely to help
The study is focused on mechanisms in a model and may not immediately translate to direct treatment for individual patients during the current grant period.
What this research studies
This research follows pregnant animal and human-health implications to understand how arsenic in the environment could influence maternal heart growth and risk of cardiac events. It uses a pioneering mouse model to explore mechanisms and translates those insights toward potential human impact. The goal is to uncover how gestational arsenic exposure alters heart development, signaling, and function during and after pregnancy, to inform safer exposures and future therapies. The study builds on prior evidence linking arsenic to cardiovascular problems and seeks to fill gaps about how pregnancy-specific changes interact with arsenic toxicity.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, it could lead to better risk assessment and prevention strategies for cardiovascular complications during and after pregnancy related to arsenic exposure.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work in mouse models suggests gestational arsenic exposure can disrupt heart growth and function, supporting the plausibility of meaningful findings, with translation needed for humans.
Where this research is happening
-
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kohr, Mark Jeffrey — Johns Hopkins University
- Study coordinator: Kohr, Mark Jeffrey
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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.