Center
for Early Lifestage Vulnerabilities to Environmental
Stressors (EPA-G2020-STAR-E1); November 12, 2020
Agency
US
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Description
The
United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of its Science to
Achieve Results (STAR) program, is seeking applications to support a Center for
Early Lifestage Vulnerabilities to Environmental
Stressors.
EPA
is interested in supporting a transdisciplinary research center to better
understand potential causal relationships among cumulative exposures to
chemicals and non-chemical environmental stressors during early lifestages
and modifying factors that result in adverse developmental health effects.
Developmental health outcomes may include attention deficit/hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD), reduced IQ, obesity, lessened
self-regulatory capacities, anxiety, depression, attention problems, lower
memory function, or structural changes to the brain. The application should
include the development and demonstration of novel and revolutionary
quantitative methods and approaches to integrate multidisciplinary data
(epidemiology, toxicology, exposure science, risk assessment, public health,
social science, and environmental science).
Researchers
need to develop quantitative methods, inclusive of all relevant chemical and
non-chemical environmental stressors and modifying factors, to establish more
conclusive exposure-outcome links. Key insights may be in identifying specific
vulnerabilities at early lifestages and their
relationships to specific health outcomes (later in early childhood) through
innovative analyses of existing epidemiological (and other) data pertaining to
early child development. Use of existing epidemiological data in conjunction
with other public health, environmental, and social data to understand early
life vulnerabilities to certain health outcomes with modifying factors is
strongly recommended.
Subtopics: The Center
application must include two individual research projects which should include
multidisciplinary teams involving appropriate expertise to address the selected
research subtopics. There are seven subtopics identified in the FOA and at
least two of them, in any combination, should be addressed in the research
projects (e.g., one project may address one subtopic and the other one may
address one subtopic; or one project may address two subtopics and the other
one may address one subtopic). The subtopics are:
·
Characterize
cumulative prenatal and/or perinatal exposures to chemicals and potential
consequential age-group-specific health effects.
·
Identify
and explain the relationship between perinatal environmental chemical exposures
and adverse children’s health outcomes.
·
Characterize
the inter-relationships between chemical and non-chemical environmental
stressors with respect to physiological responses, compensatory responses, and
resultant health effects.
·
Characterize
the dynamic interactions between children’s developing biology, behavior,
perinatal environmental chemical exposures, and outcomes.
·
Identify
the highest priority non-chemical environmental stressors and exposures to
chemicals for women prior to and/or during pregnancy and how those exposures may
impact cumulative risk for adverse birth outcomes (e.g., live births, full-term
births, low birth weight, teratology).
·
Characterize
and explain how changes in chemical exposures under an extreme event such as a
pandemic or natural disaster may impact prenatal and early children’s health.
·
Identify
and explain the relationship between perinatal environmental chemical exposures
and other factors (socio, cultural, and environmental) that would impact risk
assessment.
Announcement
Number:
EPA-G2020-STAR-E1
Closing
Date:
November
12, 2020
Link
to Full Announcement
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=328838
Contact
Information
Intaek
Hahn
202-564-4377