# Maternal and Developmental Risks from Environmental and Social Stressors (MADRES)

> **NIH NIH P50** · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA · 2021 · $1,513,011

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT—OVERALL CENTER
Eliminating disparities in maternal health outcomes is a national priority, especially given the numerous adverse
health sequelae. Moreover, pregnancy may be an underappreciated period of susceptibility to environmental
exposures and impacts on later maternal health outcomes. Given the lack of data on the relationships between
prenatal exposures and stressors with postpartum maternal health, we will focus the renewal cycle for the
Maternal And Developmental Risks from Environmental and Social Stressors (MADRES) Center on two maternal
health outcomes of utmost concern: maternal depression and cardiovascular health in the years after childbirth.
Depression is the leading cause of mental health-related morbidity worldwide, affecting approximately 300 million
people and is nearly twice as prevalent among women than men. US Hispanic women, have unique risk factors
relative to non-Hispanic women including overcoming stress associated with acculturation and under-utilization
of mental health care services. In parallel, cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the number one cause of
mortality and the prevalence of CVD has continued to climb among US women despite greater awareness and
prevention efforts. Cardiovascular conditions that arise during the prenatal period, such as preeclampsia and
hypertension, may have persistent effects into the postpartum period and predict elevated risk of later life CVD.
Despite this growing evidence, there is little to no research on whether exposure to environmental and social
stressors during this vulnerable period may promote cardiovascular dysfunction or maternal depression years
later. This is particularly important in California, where the burden of exposures is not evenly distributed, with
Hispanic and African-American populations carrying the greatest burden of environmental exposures.
Understanding risk factors for maternal depression and CVD among health disparity populations in the
first 4 years postpartum is necessary to reduce the disproportionate burden of disease borne by these
individuals. The MADRES Center will examine whether prenatal environmental exposures and social stressors
lead to higher depression and/or cardiovascular risk factors postpartum and whether patterns in exposure
disparities from the built environment and physical, chemical or social stressors at the residential and
neighborhood level relate to individual-level characteristics including allostatic load. The MADRES Center
combines three innovative research projects, a strong Community Engagement and Dissemination Core, a
comprehensive Investigator Development Core, and a synergizing Administrative Core. The MADRES Center
brings together clinical, environmental, social and public health scientists and community engagement
professionals to create a world-class research program in environmental health disparities. Our collaborative,
multi-disciplinary approach will address key gaps needed for timely a...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10219802
- **Project number:** 5P50MD015705-07
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Theresa M Bastain
- **Activity code:** P50 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $1,513,011
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2015-09-01 → 2025-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10219802

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10219802, Maternal and Developmental Risks from Environmental and Social Stressors (MADRES) (5P50MD015705-07). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10219802. Licensed CC0.

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