Baylor College of Medicine has secured nearly $15 million in renewed funding from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to continue the Baylor–Rice Superfund Research Program (SRP). The five-year grant will support research into how maternal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and other hazardous chemicals from Superfund sites may contribute to preterm births and chronic lung disease in newborns.
Houston and its surrounding areas contain more than 20 Superfund sites, which are locations contaminated by toxic industrial waste. These sites pose risks for air, water, and soil contamination. Pregnant women living near these areas face increased chances of exposure to dangerous chemicals, raising the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preterm birth. In Harris County, the rate of preterm births is about 12%, higher than the national average of 10.4%.
“In the first round of the grant, we mainly focused on PAHs as a chemical exposure influencing preterm birth. With this renewed funding, we are expanding our focus to include studies of other hazardous environmental chemicals found in Harris County Superfund sites to investigate how they too may contribute to adverse pregnancy outcomes,” said Dr. Bhagavatula Moorthy, professor of pediatrics – neonatology at Baylor, Kurt Randerath MD Endowed Chair at Texas Children’s Hospital and principal investigator and program director of the Baylor-Rice SRP center. “While PAHs are found at many Superfund sites in Harris County, we know that people are exposed to multiple chemicals at a time, and we are excited to expand our investigations to the chemical exposures that are most relevant to the people in the greater Houston area.”
Research during the initial five years revealed that placentas from babies born preterm had higher levels of PAHs compared with those born at term. Ongoing efforts involve enrolling around 3,000 women for sample collection before delivery—including blood and urine samples—and gathering cord blood and placental samples at birth. The team also plans to analyze maternal milk samples for possible effects from environmental chemical exposures.
The SRP involves collaboration among six institutions: Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, Rice University, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, University of Texas Medical Branch, and Baylor University. Scientists involved include Drs. Naomi Halas, Melissa Suter, Krithika Lingappan, Pedro Alvarez, Lance Hallberg, Theodore Wensel, Cristian Coarfa, Nagireddy Putluri and Sascha Usenko.
“SRP uses a systems approach to determine how Superfund chemical exposures can influence pregnancy outcomes and understand the factors that could be targets for interventions to prevent and reduce the health burden associated with chemicals present in the Superfund sites,” Moorthy said.
