# Center for Environmental and Health Effects of PFAS

> **NIH NIH P42** · NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY RALEIGH · 2020 · $304,441

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
 This project expands the GenX Exposure Study funded through the NC State Center for Environmental and
Health Effects of PFAS to answer urgent questions related to per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure and
their impacts on SARS-CoV-2 response. PFAS as a class are associated with immune suppression as evidenced in humans
by lower antibody titers to common vaccines in higher exposed individuals. Using the GenX Exposure Study, a
prospective study of 1,000 PFAS exposed individuals, we plan to answer two questions: 1) what is the prevalence of
overt disease, symptoms, sequelae, and antibodies in this population? and 2) does PFAS exposure modify response to
virus as measured by antibodies? This study, located in the Cape Fear Region of North Carolina, includes participants
ranging in age from 8-86 years with diverse demographic and medical histories. PFAS levels in this study are much
higher than the national values for PFAS measured; in this population, novel fluoroethers have been measured in serum
and represent ~25% of the overall PFAS levels in serum. In this population, we plan to collect two blood samples for
SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing, once in the fall of 2020 and again in the summer of 2021. Additionally, we will administer
a survey related to COVID 19 disease and symptoms at five points in time during this one-year study to capture the
ongoing disease experience of the cohort. We currently anticipate a prevalence of antibody positive infection of 10%
(June 2020); we expect this to increase as the rates of infection are increasing in North Carolina. We will use PFAS values
measured in Fall 2020 to assess the impact of PFAS exposure and SARS-CoV-2 response in cross-sectional analyses; we
will use the same PFAS measures to assess PFAS exposures on these outcomes in a longitudinal fashion for data
collected following PFAS measurement. With 1000 participants, this will be one of the largest studies to date regarding
PFAS exposure and immune response as measured by antibodies. Given that PFAS suppress immune function, exposure
may result in worse disease because individuals fail to make sufficient antibodies to the virus, or may result in milder
disease since the so-called “cytokine storm” may be mitigated by poorer immune response. Our study will provide the
survey data combined with antibody data and stored specimens to further explore how PFAS influence COVID. If a
vaccine becomes available and is adopted during our study, we will shift our focus to vaccine response. We plan to work
with our community partners both local non-governmental organizations and health departments to share results with
study participants and the community in a timely fashion. This supplement complements the ongoing research at the
NC State Superfund Center and allows us to leverage an ongoing epidemiological study to address this important public
health issue.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10208368
- **Project number:** 3P42ES031009-01S1
- **Recipient organization:** NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY RALEIGH
- **Principal Investigator:** Carolyn J. Mattingly
- **Activity code:** P42 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $304,441
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2020-09-15 → 2025-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10208368

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10208368, Center for Environmental and Health Effects of PFAS (3P42ES031009-01S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10208368. Licensed CC0.

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