A molecular epidemiologic study of African American and Hispanic mothers and newborns to investigate the role of common urban pollutants on procarcinogenic and developmental damage.

The major objective of the proposed research is to study the impact of early-life exposures to common urban pollutants on neurobehavioral development and asthma in a sample of children living in three low-income, minority communities of New York City (Central Harlem, Washington Heights and the South Bronx). Using a molecular epidemiologic approach with monitoring, biomarkers, and clinical assessments at serial time points, we will extend our study of African-American and Latina urban mothers and children in order to follow the cohort through child age 11 years to assess the longer-term impact of exposures on child health and developmental outcomes.

Enrollment eligibility was restricted to nonsmoking pregnant women 18-35 years of age who self-identified as either African American or Dominican and who had resided in northern Manhattan or the South Bronx in New York City for at least 1 year before pregnancy. Women were excluded if they used illicit drugs, had diabetes, hypertension, or known HIV, or had their first prenatal visit after the 20th week of pregnancy.

The present study enrolled 727 African American and Latino (Dominican) mothers and their children. The African American and Latino (Dominican) women were initially enrolled into the parent CCCEH study during pregnancy. Caucasian women are not included because a central purpose of the research is to evaluate health outcomes in a high risk, minority population.