Monday, June 30, 2025 6/30/2025

Air Pollution and Pregnancy Complications in Complex Urban Environments: Risks, Heterogeneity, and Mechanisms

Award Number: R01ES030353
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCIENCES
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 08/01/2019
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 04/30/2025

Group Awards By:

View Award Description

Air Pollution and Pregnancy Complications in Complex Urban Environments: Risks, Heterogeneity, and Mechanisms - Pregnancy complications (e.g. gestational diabetes [GDM], gestational hypertension [GHTN], and pre- eclampsia & eclampsia [PE/E] are major causes of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Studies have examined associations of air pollution with pregnancy complications, but have major limitations, including 1) reliance on birth certificates or billing/claims data where information may be missing or of questionable validity to ascertain outcomes and co-morbidities; 2) limited consideration of effect confounding and/or modification by other environmental factors; 3) air pollution exposure misclassification due to lack of residential address history; 4) focus on individual air pollutants rather than air pollutant mixtures; 5) lack of focus on the heterogeneity of the risk from air pollution by time and place of exposures, maternal conditions, other environmental factors, and sub-types of outcomes; 6) lack of understanding of the mediation pathways linking maternal co-morbidity with outcomes. We propose a 4-year study to address these limitations and advance knowledge of the impact of air pollutant mixture on pregnancy complications. We will leverage state-of-the-art spatiotemporal air pollution modeling and novel statistical methods that examine both individual and composite exposure profiles with a longitudinal (pre-conception through postpartum) pregnancy cohort of ~400,000 singleton pregnancies in 2008-2018 that result in a live birth or fetal death after 20 weeks gestation that have prospectively-recorded high quality clinical data and residential addresses from the electronic health record (EHR) of Kaiser Permanente Southern California members in 8 southern California counties. Primary outcomes are GHTN, PE/E, GDM. We will estimate individual-level air pollutant exposures (particulate matter and its composition and traffic-related pollutants using sophisticated spatiotemporal models), weather (air temperature, relative humidity, pressure), and built environment measures (greenness, walkability, noise, neighborhood resources) based on prospectively-recorded maternal addresses. Covariates we will examine include maternal comorbidities; history of previous pregnancies and outcomes; individual and contextual socioeconomic status (SES) indicators; employment during pregnancy and job classification; self-reported physical activity and smoking. Complementary statistical methods will be used to evaluate effects of exposure to a mixture of air pollutants while accounting for co-exposure to weather, built environment, and SES. We will examine effect modifications by SES, maternal factors, and other environmental exposures, and the potential mediating role of maternal factors on associations between air pollution and the outcomes. We will elucidate risk of pregnancy complications from air pollution exposure, heterogeneity of risk due to SES, maternal conditions, and other environmental factors, potential underlying mechanisms, susceptible sub-populations, and time windows of susceptibility. Identification of modifiable environmental risk factors and high-risk subpopulation may help to design targeted interventions to reduce these risks and associated adverse maternal and fetal outcomes.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2024	2022	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA IRVINE	160 ALDRICH HALL	IRVINE	CA	92697	ORANGE	USA	Environmental Health	000	4	5/7/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $572,625 )
2022	2022	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE	141 INNOVATION DR STE 250	IRVINE	CA	92617	ORANGE	USA	Environmental Health	000	4	4/30/2022	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$572,625
														Subtotal = $572,625

Issue Date FY: 2021 ( Subtotal = $1,357,249 )
2021	2021	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE	141 INNOVATION DR STE 250	IRVINE	CA	92617	ORANGE	USA	Environmental Health	001	3	4/27/2021	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$585,554
2021	2021	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE	141 INNOVATION DR STE 250	IRVINE	CA	92617	ORANGE	USA	Environmental Health	002	3	9/23/2021	SUPPLEMENT FOR EXPANSION	$771,695
2021	2020	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE	141 INNOVATION DR STE 250	IRVINE	CA	92617	ORANGE	USA	Environmental Health	000	2	10/23/2020	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $1,357,249

Issue Date FY: 2020 ( Subtotal = $606,460 )
2020	2020	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE	141 INNOVATION DR STE 250	IRVINE	CA	92617	ORANGE	USA	Environmental Health	000	2	4/21/2020	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$606,460
														Subtotal = $606,460

Issue Date FY: 2019 ( Subtotal = $636,868 )
2019	2019	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE	141 INNOVATION DR STE 250	IRVINE	CA	92617	ORANGE	USA	Environmental Health	000	1	7/24/2019	NEW	$636,868
														Subtotal = $636,868

Grand Total All Awards = $3,173,202

Top

All Categories

About

Search

Reports

Data Submission

Award Information

Air Pollution and Pregnancy Complications in Complex Urban Environments: Risks, Heterogeneity, and Mechanisms

Award Number: R01ES030353

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCIENCES

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 08/01/2019

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 04/30/2025

Federal Websites

Department of Health & Human Services

HHS Operating Divisions

HHS Staff Divisions

Download A Document Viewer