PFAS exposure and placental imprinting linked to child neurodevelopment
Official title: Identifying PFAS-Induced Disruption of Placental Imprinting and Neurodevelopment Through Multi-Omic Negative Control Calibration
Funded at University of Tx Md Anderson Can Ctr · NIH-11437481 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A small study will look at how exposure to PFAS during pregnancy may change placental imprinting and influence a child’s brain development and social skills.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Tx Md Anderson Can Ctr NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Houston, United States) |
| Project start | September 9, 2026 |
| Project end | August 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $241,317 |
| NIH project number | 1R21ES039048-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11437481 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are infants with available placental samples, maternal PFAS data, and neurodevelopmental assessments from the GUSTO or ELGAN birth cohorts.
✕Less likely to help
Results may not benefit children without exposure data or without access to the specific cohorts.
What this research studies
This project will use data from two birth cohorts to explore how PFAS exposure in pregnancy affects placental gene regulation, especially imprinting and RNA splicing, and how these changes relate to early neurodevelopment and social behavior in children. Researchers will apply advanced multi-omic analyses to distinguish true links from confounding factors in observational data. With parental genotypes, maternal PFAS measurements, placental omics, and child developmental assessments, the study aims to map potential biological pathways from exposure to outcomes.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, findings could improve understanding of how environmental exposures influence child development and identify molecular markers for early risk.
How similar studies have gone: Similar multi-omic approaches have shown promise in linking environmental exposures to developmental outcomes, but this study extends discovery to placental imprinting and splicing.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Tx Md Anderson Can Ctr
Houston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Bhattacharya, Arjun — University of Tx Md Anderson Can Ctr
- Study coordinator: Bhattacharya, Arjun
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.