# Maternal Stress, Human Milk Composition, and Neurodevelopmental and Feeding Outcomes

> **NIH NIH K99** · UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA · 2022 · $122,768

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Preterm birth and the hospitalization of infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) are well-documented
as stressful events for mothers. Although maternal milk is critically important to promote optimal health and
neurodevelopment for preterm infants, the effects of maternal postnatal stress on maternal lactation and
feeding outcomes and milk composition have not been systematically examined. The goal of this proposed
Pathway to Independence Award is to pair a detailed examination of lactation and feeding outcomes for
preterm infants in the NICU with a biological systems approach to understanding human milk to examine the
hypothesis that maternal stress is associated with feeding outcomes and markers of impaired
neurodevelopment for preterm infants and alters human milk and infant gut profiles in ways that affect preterm
neurodevelopment. The proposed research directly aligns with the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of
Child Health and Human Development’s scientific priorities to reduce the incidence of neurodevelopmental
disorders, optimize outcomes for preterm infants by understanding nutrition/feeding and the microbiome, and
to understand human milk composition in relationship with maternal characteristics. During the K99 phase,
measurement of perceived, biological, and known maternal stressors in the NICU will be conducted and
assessed in relation to maternal lactation and feeding outcomes (milk production, mothers’ own milk vs donor
milk vs preterm formula) (Aim 1). Infants will also undergo neurodevelopmental testing via
electroencephalogram before NICU discharge and at 4 months corrected age to assess the relationship
between maternal stress and preterm neurodevelopmental outcomes (Aim 2). Career development activities in
the K99 phase, including training in stress physiology and infant neurodevelopment, developing expertise in
lactation/feeding outcomes for preterm infants in the NICU, and learning techniques for assessing human milk
and infant gut composition data and their interpretation will take place in the excellent research environment at
the University of Minnesota School of Public Health Division of Epidemiology and Community Health and will
provide the skills needed to successfully examine associations of maternal stress with characteristics of
maternal milk and preterm infant gut composition in the R00 phase. Targeted and untargeted metabolic
approaches and microbial analyses will be used to elucidate the relationships between human milk and
preterm gut composition with maternal stress and preterm neurodevelopmental (Aim 3). The proposed
research lays the groundwork for future clinical interventions designed to mitigate the effects of maternal
postnatal stress through psychosocial support and/or nutritional supplementation and will also provide
foundational data for the successful launch of an independent research career focused on promoting nutritional
practices which yield optimal ne...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10424963
- **Project number:** 1K99HD108276-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
- **Principal Investigator:** Emily M Nagel
- **Activity code:** K99 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $122,768
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-08-01 → 2024-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10424963

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10424963, Maternal Stress, Human Milk Composition, and Neurodevelopmental and Feeding Outcomes (1K99HD108276-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10424963. Licensed CC0.

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