$3 Million NIH Grant Paves Way for ACRI to Study How Forever Chemicals Impact Child Development

LITTLE ROCK, AR. (Jan. 21, 2025) – The National Institutes of Health has awarded Arkansas Children’s Research Institute (ACRI) a $3 million grant to explore how forever chemicals impact infant and child development. The project will also look at whether a pregnant mom’s physical activity can offer some protection against those chemicals’ effects.

The work led by Aline Andres, PhD, RD, will build on her team’s earlier findings that indicate prenatal exposure to polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) can affect how genes are activated in the placenta. PFAS are man-made chemicals, also called "forever chemicals" because they take a long time to degrade so they build up in the environment. They are often found in manufactured items ranging from carpets, clothing and personal care to cleaning products, cookware and food packaging.

Andres is a professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) and associate director of the Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center (ACNC). One of six Human Nutrition Research Centers in the United States, the ACNC is a partnership between Arkansas Children’s and the USDA-Agricultural Research Service, in collaboration with ACRI and UAMS.

Some PFAS have been associated with negative health effects, and because of their widespread use and persistence, they can build up in living organisms. The research team aims to understand how PFAS may impact maternal and child health during the prenatal and postnatal period.

“By working closely with experts from many fields, our team will find out how PFAS affect children as they grow,” Andres said. “Our goal is to find ways to protect children from any potential harm these chemicals could cause.”

The team will investigate how exercise during pregnancy impacts prenatal PFAS exposure, placental PFAS exposure and function, and postnatal health.

“We know that exercise is the key to improved health in many situations,” Andres said. “We’re excited to see if this may be one more way physical activity leads to healthier families.”

ABOUT ARKANSAS CHILDREN’S

Arkansas Children's is the only health care system in the state solely dedicated to caring for Arkansas' 850,000 children. The private, non-profit organization includes two pediatric hospitals, a pediatric research institute and USDA nutrition center, a philanthropic foundation, a nursery alliance, statewide clinics, and many education and outreach programs — all focused on fulfilling a promise to define and deliver unprecedented child health. Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH) is a 336-bed, Magnet-recognized facility in Little Rock operating the state’s only Level I pediatric trauma center; the state's only burn center; the state's only Level IV neonatal intensive care unit; the state's only pediatric intensive care unit; the state’s only pediatric surgery program with Level 1 verification from the American College of Surgeons (ACS); and the state's only nationally recognized pediatric transport program. Arkansas Children’s is nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report in seven pediatric subspecialties (2024-2025): Cancer, Cardiology & Heart Surgery, Neonatal Care, Nephrology, Neurology & Neurosurgery, Orthopedics and Pulmonology & Lung Surgery. Arkansas Children’s Northwest (ACNW), the first and only pediatric hospital in the northwest Arkansas region, is a Level IV pediatric trauma center. ACNW operates a 24-bed inpatient unit; a surgical unit with five operating rooms; outpatient clinics offering over 20 subspecialties; diagnostic services; imaging capabilities; occupational therapy services; and northwest Arkansas' only pediatric emergency department, equipped with 30 exam rooms. Generous philanthropic and volunteer engagement has sustained Arkansas Children's since it began as an orphanage in 1912, and today ensures the system can deliver on its promise of unprecedented child health. To learn more, visit archildrens.org.

ABOUT UAMS

UAMS is the state’s only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a main campus in Little Rock; a northwest Arkansas regional campus in Fayetteville; a statewide network of regional campuses; and eight institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute, Institute for Digital Health & Innovation and the Institute for Community Health Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, a statewide health system that encompasses all of UAMS’ clinical enterprise. UAMS is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,485 students, 915 medical residents and fellows, and seven dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 11,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children’s, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.

###