Researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have been awarded a grant of more than $9 million by the NIH to research the effects of environmental exposures on children’s long-term health. The grant is part of Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO), a seven-year program that aims to understand the effects of environmental exposures on child health and development.
The project will study the effects of chemical, nutritional, and social factors that influence child neurodevelopment from birth through adolescence. It will be led by Dr. Rosalind Wright, Dean for Translational Biomedical Sciences at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Dr. Robert Wright, a professor of the Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health.
Another aspect of the research study will focus specifically on exposure to chemicals in neonatal intensive care units. According to a news release from ISMMS, this portion of the study will be led by Dr. Susan Teitelbaum, also a professor of Environmental Medicine and Public Health at ISMMS, and professor Judy Aschner, University Chair of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
In addition to the ECHO grant, the Icahn School of Medicine was awarded another grant under the NIH’s Children’s Health Exposure Analysis Resource (CHEAR). This research funding will provide laboratory resources and other infrastructure to analyze samples, data, and other information collected through ECHO.
(Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
“We are very excited to be involved with the ECHO and CHEAR programs,” said Dr. Rosalind Wright. “Learning how social toxins and chemicals in our environment affect child health is vital and will help us identify how to best protect children everywhere.”
As part of this multi-institute collaboration, the Mount Sinai researchers will follow over 50,000 children over a course of seven years. Following the initial two-year planning phase, additional funding may be given for the remaining five years. The researchers will collect and analyze data on environmental measures and clinical measures including pregnancy outcomes, obesity, asthma, and neurodevelopment.
“ECHO will make a huge impact in public health, as it is becoming clearer that the environment we experience as children has a major influence on our health as adults,” said Dr. Robert Wright. “Understanding the role of environment and health in children helps all of us, regardless of age.”
The 20th Annual BioResearch Product Faire™ event at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai will be held on April 12, 2017. Life science professionals are invited to attend the annual on campus trade fair for free. Click the button below for additional information or to pre-register.
If you are a laboratory equipment supplier, this is an excellent opportunity to meet face to face with life science researchers at this well-funded research market and educate them about your lab or chemical supply products. Call us at 530-272-6675 or click on the link below to reserve a space and increase your scientific sales in 2017.
While in New York, lab suppliers may want to consider also exhibiting their lab products to researchers at Rockefeller University, at the annual BioResearch Product Faire™ event the following day on Thursday, April 13, 2017.
