DURHAM, NC – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced a $7.74 million award to 91 to support a five-year study of the complex factors that jointly contribute to persistent inequalities in birth weight and premature birth.

EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson, who came to Durham to announce the award, said the grant funding will establish the first interdisciplinary research center in the South devoted to studying interactions between the environment, genetics, and socioeconomic status that contribute to poor birth outcomes.

“EPA works to protect human health and the environment for all Americans, which includes a healthy start in life for every child,” Johnson said.

During pregnancy, there are many factors such as harmful environmental exposures, social stress, mother’s health, and genetic predisposition that may affect birth outcomes. 

"In the South, there is a unique social, economic, and demographic context in which environmental exposures play out," said Duke's Marie Lynn Miranda, director of the new center, and an associate research professor in the Nicholas School of Environment and Earth Sciences.

"Though these health disparities are well documented and quite significant, we really don't know what accounts for them. It's not just a difference in income or socioeconomic status; there's more going on," she said.

Miranda adds that poor birth outcomes aren't just an immediate problem -- the effects can be very long lasting. Survivors of poor birth outcomes are at increased risk for neonatal, infant and childhood illness and death, as well as obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes as adults.

"Understanding the sources of these problem births and trying to prevent them is critical to the overall health of the nation," Johnson said.

Researchers at the center will explore how combinations of factors promote or prevent poor birth outcomes such as low birth weight among three distinct subpopulations in North Carolina. They will use data at various scales, ranging from statewide data sets to local clinical observations. And they will analyze these data both retrospectively (1990-2005) and prospectively (2007-2012).  Another project will explore the impacts of air pollutants, such as ozone and particulate matter, on fetal growth and development in mice.  

Through active partnerships between Duke and community-based organizations and health clinics, the Southern Center on Environmentally Driven Disparities in Birth Outcomes (SCEDDBO) will help accelerate the translation of research findings to women of childbearing age, families, community groups, policy makers and healthcare professionals.

Key community groups involved include: Durham Congregations, Associations and Neighborhoods (Durham CAN); the Durham County Health Department; and the Lincoln Community Health Center.  Ultimately, the center will serve as a technical and educational resource in the area of children's health and health disparities for the local community, region, nation, and international agencies. Results of this work should lead to improved interventions in clinical care and practice.

Since 1998, EPA has continued to fund research centers dedicated to improving children’s health. The Duke project is the largest such grant ever given by EPA. The original 18 centers were funded in conjunction with the National Institutes of Environmental Health.

EPA's web site: 

A list of all children’s health center awards and more information about each project:

ackerman.suzanne@epa.gov  
Karl Leif Bates, (919) 681-8054 / karl.bates@duke.edu