CCCEH Study Participant Newsletter December 2023/Boletín para los Participantes de Estudios de CCCEH Diciembre 2023

Dear Maricela,

We are excited to kick-off the new phase of ECHO 2 in the coming year and we are grateful to you for your steadfast participation in the Center’s research. Your participation allows us to delve deeper into understanding toxic chemicals and harmful pollutants that compromise our children’s health.

In this last year, we have witnessed the enactment of environmental laws at the state and federal level and these gains are due in part to your contribution to children’s environmental health and justice, CEHJ, research. Thank you for your time and commitment to the Center’s research over the years. We look forward to a fruitful new year and more CEHJ wins.

Wishing you a happy and healthy holiday season.

With great appreciation and the sincerest gratitude,

All of us at CCCEH

CCCEH Research

*Important to note - The study findings represent how toxins and air pollution may affect the population as a whole, they do not tell us about the risk or effect for any individual study participant.

Prenatal exposure to air pollution is associated with altered brain structure, function and metabolism in childhood

Prenatal exposure to air pollution disrupts cognitive, emotional, and behavioral development. The brain disturbances associated with prenatal air pollution are largely unknown. In this prospective cohort study, we estimated prenatal exposures to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and then assessed their associations with measures of brain anatomy, tissue microstructure, neurometabolites, and blood flow in 332 youth, 6–14 years old. We then assessed how the then assessed how those brain disturbances were associated with measures of intelligence, ADHD and anxiety symptoms, and socialization.

@TheJCPP #ACAMHawards2023 @acmah

Life satisfaction for adolescents with developmental and behavioral disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic

Sherlock P, Mansolf M, Blackwell CK, Blair C, Cella D, Deoni S, Fry RC, Ganiban J, Gershon R, Herbstman JB, Lai JS, Leve LD, LeWinn KZ, Margolis AE, Miller EB, Neiderhiser JM, Oken E, O'Shea TM, Stanford JB, Zelazo PD; program collaborators for Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes. Life satisfaction for adolescents with developmental and behavioral disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pediatr Res. 2023 Oct 24. doi: 10.1038/s41390-023-02852-3. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37875726.

This study aimed to identify contextual factors associated with life satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic for adolescents with mental, emotional, behavioral, and developmental (MEBD) disabilities.

Conclusion: Findings from this study highlight the importance of interventions aimed specifically at increasing adolescent social connectedness, family engagement, and access to medical support for adolescents with MEBD disabilities, particularly in the face of stressors, such as a global pandemic.

Associations between mitochondrial biomarkers, urban residential exposures and childhood asthma outcomes over 6 months

Miller RL, Rivera J, Lichtiger L, Govindarajulu US, Jung KH, Lovinsky-Desir S, Perera F, Balcer Whaley S, Newman M, Grant TL, McCormack M, Perzanowski M, Matsui EC. Environ Res. 2023 Oct 9;239(Pt 1):117342. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.117342. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37813137.

Exposures to indoor allergens and air pollution continue to perpetuate and exacerbate asthma, especially for minority children living in urban areas (Sadreameli et al., 2021; Jung et al., 2014, 2021; Commodore et al., 2020; Ahmed et al., 2020).

Determining biomarkers of these responses to exposures and evaluating whether they predict worse lung function or higher airway inflammation may help optimize environmental and medical approaches to childhood asthma.

Community Outreach & Translation Core

(COTC)

Partners in Action

Dr. Lariah Edwards and Anabel Cole, COTC Coordinator conducted a Toxics in Personal Care Products Workshop for adolescents. Eighteen young people attended, ages 12-17, hailing from the Northern Manhattan area schools, including CCCEH COTC's Community Advisory and Stakeholder Board partners: the Inwood Academy for Leadership and Children's Aid Society Salome Ureña Leadership Academy.

The session aims to 1) address deep-rooted cultural beliefs driving the use of toxic personal care and beauty products within an environmental health and justice framework, 2) educate youth about the dangers that toxic chemicals could pose to their health, and 3) provide tools for youth to make informed and healthier decisions when shopping for products.

During the training most of the youth indicated that they are the ones who choose their personal care and beauty products. For this reason, it is important to conduct workshops directly with young people. Feedback from the participants includes: The workshop was informative, easy to understand and interactive. Thank you youth!

Funding Source: NYU Collaborative Center in Children's Environmental Health Research and Translation Subaward # 21-A0-00-1006189.

Seventeen CASB members gathered for our first in-person meeting since the pandemic. Dr. Julie Herbstman, CCCEH Director, described the refunding and upcoming research initiatives under ECHO Cycle 2 and described other Center research underway: Airway Trees, Arsenic & Cultural Variations in Rice and Environmental Contributions to Disparities in Learning. The COTC goal was also presented: to enhance environmental health science communication.

The CASB engaged in a lively discussion as they addressed the following questions to guide science communication efforts: what are the CEHJ areas of greatest concern?; how can we help engage the community with CEHJ initiatives and what are the best ways the Center could help communicate CEHJ issues.

Meeting take aways:

CEHJ communication 1) develop initiatives to improve how science is communicated to the public and 2) identify and train credible messengers in the community to increase CEHJ literacy and advocacy. Engage youth- providing space and creating opportunities to develop youth leadership in CEHJ issues.

Briana Black, Director of Leave It Better hosted a Halloween celebration at the MS 331 community garden in the Bronx. The students and community visitors enjoyed decorating pumpkins and making costumes. Council woman, Pierina Sanchez who represents the 14th council district was in attendance. CCCEH EHJ Advocates Joseph Castro and Quincy Wise, and Maricela Ureño, COTC Coordinator asked community visitors to send e-messages to their Senators asking for lead free waterlines in the Bronx. Cheers to Briana Black for bringing the community together!

Welcome to CCCEH

Ornela Sierra-Torres is a dedicated and passionate educator. She is also an experienced bilingual crisis counselor. She provided crucial crisis care to individuals through an online platform. For more than seven years she worked as a science teacher with the Union City Board of Education. These experiences underscore her devotion to science and community outreach. Ornela holds a B.S. in Biology from St. Peter's University and a Master of Science in Human Biology, from St. Joseph's University solidifying her foundation in the sciences. She joined the Fair Start team in September as a Research Assistant.

Camille Valvur joined the ECHO team as a Study Research Assistant in October. She is a graduate of New York University, (NYU) with a B.S. in Applied Psychology and Global Public Health. Before joining CCCEH, she worked with NYU's, Researching Inequity in Society Ecologically (RISE) Lab's SAFE Spaces Project, as a Project Coordinator. She worked recruiting participants in Close to Home facilities throughout NYC's five boroughs. Camille aims to continue working towards equity and justice with research and society.