# Sources, Transport, Exposure & Effects of PFAS (STEEP) Center - RENEWAL

> **NIH NIH P42** · UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND · 2024 · $1,544,314

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT – OVERALL
PFAS have emerged as national priority pollutants, and more than 2000 sites contaminated by PFAS have been
identified across the U.S., including 180 EPA-identified Superfund sites. Elevated human exposures to PFAS
have been associated with adverse health outcomes, including metabolic disruption, immunotoxicity, and
endocrine disruption, although exposure-dependence and individual vulnerability need to be better understood.
STEEP II builds on the successful collaborative it established within the first STEEP SRP Center (STEEP I) to
further advance the science, training, engagement and outreach in support of SRP mandates. STEEP II will
continue to collaborate with the RI and MA state and federal agencies, and will expand its reach to work with DE,
ME, NJ, and MI state agencies in support of their needs for knowledge on PFAS. The environmental engineering
and chemistry projects will focus on the transport and transformation of PFAS precursors, as well as legacy,
novel, and total PFAS. Novel detection tools will be developed and used to support remediation of PFAS-
contaminated groundwater, the atmospheric transport and fate of PFAS, and to predict bioaccumulation of PFAS
relative to modeling predictions. The Center will build on its leading research on the critical effects of PFAS in
children, with a focus on immunotoxicity and metabolism. Given the public health importance of breastfeeding,
STEEP II will focus on understanding cellular mechanisms that dictate PFAS uptake and elimination into milk
and accumulation in the infant, thereby advancing understanding of toxicokinetic mechanisms and potentials for
preventing PFAS from reaching human milk. STEEP II research projects, working with the Community
Engagement Core (CEC) and the Data Management and Analysis Core (DMAC), will perform a thorough human
exposure assessment for PFAS and risk assessment. STEEP trainees and mentors will remain key to the
ongoing growth as a unified Center, via cross-cutting collaboration fostered by the Research Experience and
Training Coordination Core (RETCC), and joint mentorship. STEEP II will include an additional focus on Diversity,
Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) training for trainees and mentors alike. The STEEP II goals will address the following
Specific Aims:
 Specific Aim 1: Assess the distribution, transformations, and bioaccumulation of PFAS
 Specific Aim 2: Investigate the processes affecting PFAS distribution and uptake and assess critical
adverse effects in humans
 Specific Aim 3: Engage new and established stakeholders across multiple sites
 Specific Aim 4: Integrate STEEP internally and execute effective outreach and collaboration with
stakeholders

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10868698
- **Project number:** 5P42ES027706-08
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND
- **Principal Investigator:** Rainer Lohmann
- **Activity code:** P42 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $1,544,314
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-01 → 2027-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10868698

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10868698, Sources, Transport, Exposure & Effects of PFAS (STEEP) Center - RENEWAL (5P42ES027706-08). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10868698. Licensed CC0.

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