# Maternal and Infant Environmental Health Riskscape (MIEHR) Research Center

> **NIH NIH P50** · BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE · 2020 · $1,431,679

## Abstract

Despite the knowledge that pregnancy affects the health trajectory of both mother and child across the lifecourse,
significant racial disparities exist. African-American (AA) women are at greatest risk for preterm birth and for
dying from hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) than any other group in the U.S. To decipher what drives
these disparities, we are proposing a new Environmental Health Disparities Maternal and Infant
Environmental Health Riskscape (MIEHR) Research Center. The Goal of the MIEHR Research Center is to
elucidate contributions of the biological, physical, social and built environments of the environmental riskscape
to environmental health disparities in pregnant women and their infants. The Houston-based MIEHR leverages
partnerships and strong institutional support from Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Southern University,
the fourth largest historically black university in the U.S. Notably, Houston offers a microcosm for research at
the intersection of environmental exposures and health disparities, with its diverse multi-ethnic and multi-racial
population and documented environmental injustices. The city has the largest petrochemical complex in the
U.S., numerous hazardous waste sites, no zoning and is at risk for natural and industrial disasters. The MIEHR
Research Center has two synergistic Research Projects that build on a unique ongoing, perinatal database and
biospecimen repository: the BCM Peribank. Project 1: The Environmental Riskscape, Disasters and
Obstetric Outcomes will utilize an epidemiologic approach to identify differences in race-specific associations
between the mixture of individual chemicals (i.e. polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and metals) and place-based
stressors in the riskscape and preterm birth. This project will also examine the impact of Hurricane Harvey on
racial disparities in these exposures. Project 2: Disparities Aware Classifiers for Maternal and Infant Health
will use an “omics” approach to develop and validate disparity aware classifiers for preterm birth and HDP for
AA and non-Hispanic White women. The classifiers will be built from data obtained at delivery and the predictive
capability of these classifiers will then be tested in second trimester pregnant women. MIEHR activities will be
informed by a Community Engagement and Dissemination Core, which will enhance environmental health
literacy and capacity for sustainable initiatives that build community resilience. An Investigator Development
Core will support innovative pilot research that will promote career development of talented investigators from
health disparity populations and increase capacity for future environmental health disparities research. The
Administrative Core will provide organizational and integration support for MIEHR investigators, institutions
and engaged communities. The MIEHR Research Center will accomplish its goals in research, career
development and community engagement with multidisciplinary and div...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10062083
- **Project number:** 1P50MD015496-01
- **Recipient organization:** BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** ELAINE SYMANSKI
- **Activity code:** P50 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $1,431,679
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-07-16 → 2025-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10062083

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10062083, Maternal and Infant Environmental Health Riskscape (MIEHR) Research Center (1P50MD015496-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10062083. Licensed CC0.

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