Understanding how premature birth affects math skills and the brain
Official title: Identifying Relations between Premature Birth, Parental Factors, and the Neural Basis of Numerical Development
Funded at University of Iowa · NIH-11416717 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study looks at why children born early may have more trouble with math and how parents and the brain relate to those challenges.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Iowa NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Iowa City, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2025 |
| Project end | May 31, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $352,782 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HD116831-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11416717 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children born preterm or with very early birth who are entering school age and whose families are willing to participate in assessments and potential home-environment interventions.
✕Less likely to help
Typically developing term-born children without math difficulty may not directly benefit from the interventions studied.
What this research studies
Researchers at the University of Iowa will follow children as they enter school to see how prematurity, early verbal skills, and brain development relate to math performance. They will test whether verbal abilities and neural systems mediate math difficulties and whether a supportive home environment can help offset these challenges. The project uses behavioral assessments, brain imaging, and family environment information to map the pathways from birth through early schooling. The goal is to identify early markers and intervention targets to boost mathematical learning in preterm children.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could lead to earlier identification and targeted support for math skills in preterm children.
How similar studies have gone: Prior research suggests links between prematurity, language skills, brain development, and math outcomes; this study builds on these findings with a focused mediation approach.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Iowa
Iowa City, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Demir-Lira, Ece — University of Iowa
- Study coordinator: Demir-Lira, Ece
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
How life circumstances affect brain aging in people with end-stage kidney disease
This project looks at how neighborhood, income, education, and personal resilience relate to earlier memory and thinking problems in adults with end-stage kidney disease.
-
Mitigating HIV-Associated Premature Aging with Cannabinoids
A doctor-scientist team is testing whether cannabis-based anti-inflammatory effects can slow aging-related brain changes in people living with HIV.
-
Megaplasmids and gut microbes in babies and adults
Scientists are studying unusually large plasmids found in the gut bacteria of babies and adults to understand how these big DNA pieces might affect health and antibiotic resistance.
-
Metabolite-based approach to strengthen the premature gut
A doctor-scientist team will test a metabolite and a synthetic version to help the immature intestines of very premature babies develop better defenses against NEC.
-
Center to speed up proven health improvements for people with serious mental illness
A Johns Hopkins-led center aims to bring already-proven heart-health interventions to adults with serious mental illness to cut their early deaths from heart disease.
-
Antenatal steroids to boost lung health in premature babies in Bangladesh
This project tests whether giving steroids before birth helps the lungs grow better in babies born very early in Bangladesh.
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.