Cardiometabolic Health and Epigenetic Aging Across the Life Course Among Hispanic/Latino Immigrant Groups in the United States

NIH RePORTER · NIH · F31 · $51,974 · view on reporter.nih.gov ↗

Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY (ABSTRACT) Hispanic/Latino populations in the United States (U.S.) carry a disproportionate burden of poor cardiometabolic health outcomes, with higher rates of obesity, diabetes, and hypercholesterolemia than non-Hispanic White populations. However, the Hispanic/Latino population is diverse and has significant heterogeneity in cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevalence and CVD risk by factors such as country of origin and socioeconomic status (SES). Limited research has investigated how immigration status as a social stressor contributes to cardiometabolic health and epigenetic aging among Hispanic/Latino populations. Immigrants in general face greater threats to their health due to lower SES, limited English proficiency, and reduced health care access and use. However, differences in CVD risk and epigenetic aging also exist by immigration status, a social and economic stressor that dictates immigrants’ access to health-promoting services such as public safety-net programs and affordable health care. We propose to use the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), a large, representative health survey of Californian residents that produces valid health estimates by disaggregated Hispanic/Latino background. We then propose to use data from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL) cohort study, where participants completed an extensive set of SES and stress measures, provided blood samples assayed for DNA methylation age, and completed clinic visits for objective cardiometabolic health measures. The overarching goal of this proposed research is to evaluate how immigration status contributes to disparities in cardiometabolic health and accelerated epigenetic aging across the life course among Hispanic/Latino populations in the U.S. In Aim 1, we will use 2015-2021 CHIS data to evaluate the associations between immigration status and CVD risk factors and disease among Hispanic/Latino adults (N~32,000) and adolescents (N~2,000) in California. In Aim 2, we will use HCHS/SOL Youth data (N=1,200) to estimate the associations between parental immigration status, accelerated epigenetic aging, and objective cardiometabolic health measures among Hispanic/Latino adolescents. In Aim 3, we will use a sub-sample of HCHS/SOL adult data (N=1,000) to estimate the longitudinal associations between immigration status, accelerated epigenetic aging, and objective cardiometabolic health measures across two points over a 6-year period. Upon completion of these aims, we anticipate the impact of this work to significantly advance our understanding of racial/ethnic disparities in CVD by evaluating differences in CVD risk by immigration status, estimating the associations between immigration status, epigenetic aging, and cardiometabolic health, and ultimately informing future cardiovascular public health interventions for Hispanic/Latino populations. The planned research and training goals contained in this fellowship application will deve...

Key facts

NIH application ID
10826331
Project number
1F31HL172677-01
Recipient
EMORY UNIVERSITY
Principal Investigator
Jasmine Ko Aqua
Activity code
F31
Funding institute
NIH
Fiscal year
2024
Award amount
$51,974
Award type
1
Project period
2024-06-15 → 2026-06-14