# The Impact of Environmental Stressors on Chronic Disease Disparities in Women

> **NIH NIH R01** · LSU HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER · 2021 · $1

## Abstract

Project Summary
The overall objective of this project is to determine the impact of social stressors on epigenetic
age acceleration and chronic health disparities and to test whether the social environment,
individual health behaviors, and race/geography/SES modify or mediate the association
between traumatic stress and health (disparities), directly or indirectly through biologic age
acceleration. We expect that the trauma burden will impact chronic diseases through DNA
methylation (DNAm) age acceleration. The WaTCH cohort is an important, highly trauma-
exposed sample of women uniquely poised for a third wave of data collection that continues
assessing trauma exposure, depression, PTSD, social context, physical health, and collection of
an additional blood specimen eight years after the baseline to examine of DNAm age. Aim 1 will
investigate disparities in psychological health (PTSD, depression), physical health (diabetes,
hypertension, and cancer), and DNAm age acceleration as women age, particularly as
influenced by cumulative trauma burden. Aim 2 will examine the influences of contextual
variables, including social capital and financial strain, that may mediate or moderate the effects
of cumulative trauma burden on adverse psychological and physical health outcomes. Aim 3 will
explore the mediating effects of DNAm age acceleration on physical and mental health
outcomes.
The proposed study will use the WaTCH cohort of 2800 women exposed to the Deepwater
Horizon Oil Spill in coastal Louisiana in 2010. It will entail the third wave of data and
biospecimen collection and incorporate data already gathered through two previous waves of
data collection. Self-reported health data on demographic, income and financial stressors, oil
spill exposure, neighborhood context, social capital, health behaviors, trauma history,
psychological symptoms, and physical health will be collected through telephone interviews.
Repeat blood samples will be collected from up to 1058 women with baseline samples.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10298166
- **Project number:** 1R01AG069609-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** LSU HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** NICOLE R NUGENT
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $1
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-07-15 → 2021-08-15

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10298166

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10298166, The Impact of Environmental Stressors on Chronic Disease Disparities in Women (1R01AG069609-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10298166. Licensed CC0.

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