Santa Ana in Orange County (OC), California (CA) is a predominantly Latina/o, immigrant and low-income community
that is bound by multiple freeways, has a large industrial corridor, and has 65% of houses built prior to 1960. Residents of
Santa Ana have identified lead (Pb) exposure in the community as a major environmental health concern. Responding to
the concerns, we established the ¡Plo-NO! Santa Ana! (Lead-Free Santa Ana!) community-based participatory research
partnership to examine elevated Pb levels in urban soil in Santa Ana since 2017. In this study, we propose to address the
community-identified concerns of lead exposure and its impact on children’s health and academic performance using a
community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach. We will also address important gaps in previous Pb research
and practice, including 1) limited consideration of both life course exposure and susceptible time window for chronic low-
level Pb exposure; 2) lack of research based on repeated outcome measures; 3) few studies on synergistic effect of metal
mixtures; 4) few studies on multi-level (e.g. household, school, neighborhood) intervention; and 5) lack of community-
driven research devoted to translating knowledge to effective public health equity strategies. Our overarching goal is to
examine associations of life course and current Pb exposures with children’s academic performance and neurobehavioral
outcomes, identify risk factors of current Pb exposure, and develop and implement a Public Health Equity Action Plan
(PHEAP), with particular attention to health equity. Study population involves 600 children 7-10 years old at
enrollment and their primary caregiver. Individual-level exposure to Pb and other metals will be estimated from 1)
deciduous tooth-based exposure at a weekly resolution from the 2nd trimester of gestation up to the 1st year of life and
every 6-months from age 1 up to the time when the tooth is shed; 2) blood for current exposure. Repeated outcomes
include 5 years of academic performance and 3 years of behavior outcomes based on validated Child Behavior Checklist
(CBCL) questionnaire. We will examine associations of academic performance and behavioral outcomes with deciduous
teeth-based early life Pb exposure (Aim 1) and current blood Pb exposure (Aim 2). Further, we will develop, disseminate,
implement, and evaluate a multi-level (e.g. household, school, neighborhood, city, county) Public Health Equity Action
Plan, with a focus on equity (Aim 3). The strengths of this study include: bridging CBPR and implementation science by
leveraging results from Aims 1-2 of this study and practice-based evidence to inform the PHEAP, responsiveness to
community-driven priorities, strong community and university leadership, life course measurements of Pb and metal
mixtures, a large prospective cohort with longitudinal measurements of both exposure and outcomes, and multiple levels
of assessments (i.e. household, school, neighborhood) that advance the science on environmental health inequities to
develop, evaluate, and pilot action plans and community-driven interventions. We will advance knowledge on how low
levels of Pb exposure over the life course adversely affect children’s school performance and behavioral outcomes. The
translational value of this study is noteworthy, as it integrates etiologic data and practice-based evidence to an equity-
oriented multi-level action strategy to improve child academic and neurodevelopmental outcomes.
