# Development of biomarkers in deciduous teeth of children with FASD that predict neurobehavioral performance

> **NIH NIH UH2** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO · 2021 · $269,861

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ ABSTRACT
Prenatal alcohol exposure sequelae, collectively termed Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), are varied
and present in as many as 10% of elementary school children. They affect cognitive functioning, as well as
physical and mental health, and represent a significant public health issue. Timely and appropriate treatment
can positively impact a child’s developmental trajectory and prevent secondary disabilities. In the majority of
cases, diagnosis of FASD requires documentation of prenatal alcohol exposure. A biomarker of prenatal alcohol
exposure would allow diagnosis of children where maternal self-report is unavailable. Prevention and treatment
efforts would benefit from biomarkers able to noninvasively assess the magnitude and gestational time of
exposures. Additionally, research into the etiology of FASD would benefit from such markers and the refining of
our current understanding of mechanisms. We propose to develop biomarkers in dental tissue to quantitatively
measure exposures, allowing the documentation of prenatal alcohol exposure in naturally shed deciduous (baby)
teeth and the linking of prenatal exposures to neurobehavioral deficits. We will optimize our techniques to be
able to detect exposures by month of second and third trimester. We will test whether our novel biomarkers
predict neurobehavioral performance. In teasing out associations among exposures and outcomes, our study
benefits from the well-characterized CIFASD cohort where consistently gathered, already existing data may be
accessed and analyzed in conjunction with novel biomarker findings. This study will provide preliminary data for
an R01 or U01 application to incorporate additional outcome data existing within the array of CIFASD data, such
as neuroimaging, assess the effects of co-exposures, and further calibrate and improve our predictive capacity
within the larger sample.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10168262
- **Project number:** 1UH2AA029062-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
- **Principal Investigator:** Christine Austin
- **Activity code:** UH2 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $269,861
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-02-25 → 2022-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10168262

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10168262, Development of biomarkers in deciduous teeth of children with FASD that predict neurobehavioral performance (1UH2AA029062-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10168262. Licensed CC0.

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