How early-life infections and HIV exposure shape heart and metabolic health in South African children
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-11394076 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Tracking how early infections and HIV exposure affect metabolism and early heart health in South African children from birth through early adolescence.
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 | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $324,073 |
| NIH project number | 3R01HD108048-04S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11394076 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children born to mothers with HIV but uninfected (HEU) and children unexposed to HIV (HU) who are followed from birth into early adolescence, especially those in cohorts like Drakenstein in South Africa.
✕Less likely to help
Adults, people without early-life medical records or biosamples, and individuals outside the cohort's geographic region are unlikely to directly benefit from this project.
What this research studies
If your child is part of this work, researchers follow children born to mothers with and without HIV in South Africa, taking blood samples from birth through early adolescence to measure 250 metabolites and markers of inflammation. They compare children who were exposed to HIV but did not acquire it (HEU) with children who were not exposed (HU) to see how early infections change metabolic profiles over time. The team links those molecular changes to early signs of heart and metabolic problems to identify pathways that raise risk. The project uses the existing Drakenstein Child Health Study samples and health records to map these relationships longitudinally.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could identify early blood markers and infection-related pathways that help prevent or reduce cardiometabolic problems in children exposed to HIV.
How similar studies have gone: Previous cohort and metabolomics studies, including work by this team, have linked early infections and inflammation to pro-atherogenic metabolic patterns, but the full longitudinal link to adolescent cardiometabolic outcomes remains to be clarified.
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.