Official websites use .gov

A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS

A lock ( 🔒 ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Need Help

Epigenetic aging, social factors, and preterm birth among Black women

Award Number: R01MD018293
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL CENTER ON MINORITY HEALTH AND HEALTH DISPARITIES
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 03/18/2023
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2027

Group Awards By:

View Award Description

Epigenetic aging, social factors, and preterm birth among Black women - Preterm birth (PTB; <37 weeks gestation) is the leading cause of infant mortality among Black infants. Maternal chronological age has long been used to assess risk for PTB; however, chronological age assumes that individuals age at similar rates and does not capture the inter-individual differences that may exist due to race. Although both Black and White women have a maternal age-related increase in PTB, the risk for PTB is higher among Black women than among White women at all maternal ages. Geronimus’ weathering hypothesis describes a pattern in which age-related increases in PTB occur at a younger age for Black women, and risk with age increases in a linear pattern, rather than the J-shaped association with chronological age overall. This acceleration of aging has been attributed to Black women being more likely to experience chronic stress due to social stressors. Epigenetic age, a measure of cellular or biological aging, reflects influences of past exposures and may be more useful in determining risk for PTB than chronological age, which is uniform regardless of life experiences. However, research is lacking on (1) the association of social stressors with epigenetic aging among Black pregnant women; and (2) the association of epigenetic aging with PTB among these women. This study is designed to address the gaps in prior research and relies on our previous work demonstrating that ribosomal DNA methylation (rDNAm) harbors the rDNA clock, a novel, sensitive, and evolutionarily conserved clock of epigenetic aging. The goal of this study is to examine epigenetic aging as a marker of social stressors and a biomarker indicating risk of PTB among Black women. Our cohort is comprised of 550 Black pregnant women enrolled prior to the COVID-19 pandemic from the Detroit, MI and Columbus, OH areas (R01 MD011575, PI Giurgescu). Women completed questionnaires and provided whole blood samples and saliva during pregnancy, and these biological samples will be used to complete the proposed study. Maternal medical records have been abstracted. We aim to: (Aim 1) Determine whether social stressors are associated with an accelerated rDNAm clock among Black pregnant women; (Aim 2) Determine whether women with PTB have an accelerated rDNAm clock compared with women with term birth; and (Aim 3) Assess performance of the rDNAm clock associated with PTB relative to alternative metrics of epigenetic aging. Epigenetic age, a biological reflection of interindividual variability in aging, holds significant potential as a useful parameter in PTB prevention from a precision health perspective. Currently, the ability to predict PTB is poor, especially among Black women. Precision health has the potential to identify individual women who are at risk for PTB, and to identify therapeutic targets to prevent an individual from having PTB.


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: 2026 ( Subtotal = $620,718 )
2026	2026	THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA BOARD OF TRUSTEES	4000 CENTRAL FLORIDA BLVD	ORLANDO	FL	32816	ORANGE	USA	Minority Health and Health Disparities Research	001	4	2/12/2026	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$62,072
2026	2026	THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA BOARD OF TRUSTEES	4000 CENTRAL FLORIDA BLVD	ORLANDO	FL	32816	ORANGE	USA	Minority Health and Health Disparities Research	000	4	12/12/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$558,646
														Subtotal = $620,718

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $583,204 )
2025	2025	THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA BOARD OF TRUSTEES	4000 CENTRAL FLORIDA BLVD	ORLANDO	FL	32816	ORANGE	USA	Minority Health and Health Disparities Research	000	3	11/28/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$583,204
														Subtotal = $583,204

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $655,741 )
2024	2024	THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA BOARD OF TRUSTEES	4000 CENTRAL FLORIDA BLVD	ORLANDO	FL	32816	ORANGE	USA	Minority Health and Health Disparities Research	001	2	5/23/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$47,323
2024	2024	THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA BOARD OF TRUSTEES	4000 CENTRAL FLORIDA BLVD	ORLANDO	FL	32816	ORANGE	USA	Minority Health and Health Disparities Research	000	2	11/5/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$608,418
														Subtotal = $655,741

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $731,899 )
2023	2023	UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA BOARD OF TRUSTEES, THE	4000 CENTRAL FLORIDA BLVD	ORLANDO	FL	32816	ORANGE	USA	Minority Health and Health Disparities Research	000	1	3/18/2023	NEW	$731,899
														Subtotal = $731,899

Grand Total All Awards = $2,591,562

Top

All Categories

About

Search

Reports

Data Submission

Award Information

Epigenetic aging, social factors, and preterm birth among Black women

Award Number: R01MD018293

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL CENTER ON MINORITY HEALTH AND HEALTH DISPARITIES

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

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

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 03/18/2023

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2027

Federal Websites

Department of Health & Human Services

HHS Operating Divisions

HHS Staff Divisions

Download A Document Viewer