# Pre-adolescent and Late-adolescent Follow-up of the CHARGE Study Children

> **NIH NIH UH3** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · 2021 · $3,922,143

## Abstract

The proposed UC Davis ECHO ReCHARGE Study will follow a cohort of children last seen at ages 2-5 
years (‘baseline’) to determine environmental chemical and non-chemical stressors and resiliency 
factors that are associated with neurodevelopmental outcomes at ages 8-12 years (pre-adolescent) 
and 15-19 years (mid- to late adolescence). This project leverages the resources of the CHARGE 
(Childhood Autism Risks from Genes and Environment) Study, which, since 2003, has been enrolling 
three groups aged 2-5 years: children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), children with other 
developmental delays (DD) and children from the general population with typical development (TD). 
These three groups, the ReCHARGE cohort, will be examined for the following outcomes of interest: 
attention deficit or hyperactivity symptoms; changes in cognitive or adaptive function; changes in 
severity or diagnosis; and symptoms of anxiety or depression. Pilot testing will take place in the 
UG3 phase, and in the UH3 phase, all will be examined either in pre-adolescence or mid- to late 
adolescence. The primary exposures of interest are pesticides, metals, air pollution, phthalates, 
nutrients, neighborhood characteristics, and family factors.
Additionally, three mechanistic studies are proposed: an investigation of intergenerational 
epigenetic profiles; method development for metals analysis in dried blood spots; and sex specific 
associations of adrenal hormones with depressive symptoms. Approximately 1400 families are eligible 
for ReCHARGE, providing a robust sample for examination of main effects, interaction and mediation 
analyses. As part of the ECHO consortium, the ReCHARGE team will participate in the synthetic 
cohort combining children from multiple sites, and the cluster of studies focused on 
neurodevelopment in harmonizing protocols for the prospective UH3 phase and in seeking to analyze 
retrospective samples and data collaboratively, where feasible. During the UG3 phase, the ReCHARGE 
team will develop protocols, pilot test methods for recontacting and recruiting, for epigenetics in 
saliva vs. blood, and for implementation of the adrenal hormone study, including ways to increase 
compliance. Unique features of ReCHARGE include the contribution to understanding life course 
development in children with two different types of disabilities, and a novel model of adrenal 
hormone relationships with sex-specific affective disorders.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10240314
- **Project number:** 5UH3OD023365-06
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS
- **Principal Investigator:** Deborah Hall Bennett
- **Activity code:** UH3 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $3,922,143
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2016-09-21 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10240314

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10240314, Pre-adolescent and Late-adolescent Follow-up of the CHARGE Study Children (5UH3OD023365-06). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10240314. Licensed CC0.

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