Funded Projects

Explore our currently funded projects. You may search with all three fields, then focus your results by applying any of the dropdown filters. After customizing your search, you may download results and even save your specific search for later.

Project # Project Title Research Focus Area Research Program Administering IC Institution(s) Investigator(s) Location(s) Year Awarded
1R01HD113199-01
The Opioid in Pregnancy: Imaging of Oxygenation, Inflammation, and Development in Brain & Placenta Project (OPIOID BPP) Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NICHD WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY KELLY, JEANNIE CHEN (contact); WANG, YONG Saint Louis, MO 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-030
Summary:

Opioid use disorder during pregnancy is associated with poor infant outcomes including neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) and impaired brain development during childhood. This project will use advanced imaging techniques to measure inflammation in the placenta and evaluate brain structure of the developing fetus. These data will be combined with measures of infant NOWS and neurodevelopmental outcomes at birth and 1 year of age. This research will explore the value of these imaging methods as diagnostic tools for infants exposed to opioids during pregnancy. The research will also study the effect of opioids on the placenta’s ability to provide oxygen to the growing fetus as well as the potential for inflammation to damage the placenta and harm development of the fetal brain. 

1R01DA059176-01
Multimodal Analysis of Gestational Health and Placental Injury in Opioid-Affected Pregnancies Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NIDA MAGEE-WOMEN'S RES INST AND FOUNDATION OUYANG, YINGSHI (contact); KRANS, ELIZABETH E; SADOVSKY, YOEL Pittsburgh, PA 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-038
Summary:

This project will study the harmful effects of illicit and prescription opioid use during pregnancy and its consequences on the mother, fetus, and placenta. The research will integrate multiple different technologies to study molecular changes in biospecimens taken from research participants. Samples to be collected at birth and characterized include plasma and urine from the mother across the three trimesters of pregnancy, tissue samples of the placenta, and fetal cord blood. This research aims to shed new light on the underlying biology of opioid exposure on the placenta during pregnancy toward development of early interventions during opioid-exposed pregnancies. 

1R01DA059177-01
Strategies to Define and Mitigate the Placental and Fetal Alterations Caused by Maternal Oxycodone Exposure Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NIDA UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA MEDICAL CENTER HARRIS, LYNDA KATHERINE (contact); PENDYALA, GURUDUTT N Omaha, NE 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-033
Summary:

Exposure to prescription opioids during pregnancy can alter growth of the fetus and cause persistent neurological problems during childhood. This project will identify biological underpinnings of oxycodone exposure on health of the placenta, brain development of the fetus, and behavioral problems observed in early infancy. This research will also assess whether melatonin supplementation can limit these harmful outcomes. Overall, the research aims to characterize the health effects of oxycodone used during pregnancy, as well as to point to new tools and molecular indicators (biomarkers) for diagnosing, treating, and preventing opioid harm to the fetus and mother.

1R01DA059181-01
Fentanyl Use During Pregnancy: Impact on Dam, Placenta, and Offspring Development Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NIDA UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MED CTR RÜEDI-BETTSCHEN, DANIELA Jackson, MS 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-036
Summary:

The number of women misusing opioids during pregnancy has more than quadrupled in recent years, with fentanyl use rising to an all-time high. The exposure puts the fetus at serious risk for opioid withdrawal, as well as developmental and behavioral effects during infancy and childhood. This project will study the effects of fentanyl use during pregnancy on maternal physiology and stress, function of the placenta, pregnancy outcomes, as well as infant withdrawal symptoms, development, and stress. This research aims to identify new strategies for diagnosing, treating, and preventing opioid harm to the fetus and mother.

1R01HD113188-01
Impact of Maternal Substance Use on Offspring Neurobehavioral Development Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NICHD MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL EDLOW, ANDREA GOLDBERG (contact); BOGDAN, RYAN H; LO, JAMIE ; SULLIVAN, ELINOR L Boston, MA 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-031
Summary:

Opioid use disorder with simultaneous misuse of cannabis and alcohol during pregnancy is associated with increased risk for several infant neurodevelopmental problems. This project will evaluate the effects of opioids and other substances of misuse on the mother’s immune system by studying maternal immune cells and measuring molecules in her blood. The research will also study the role of the nerve communication molecule serotonin produced by the placenta. This research will take advantage of data from the HEALthy Brain and Child Development Study that is focused on child development measures. Together, these studies will provide important new insights into the ways misused substances affect infant brain development and neurodevelopmental outcomes.

1R01DA059152-01
POPI: Placenta, Opioids and Perinatal Implications Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NIDA UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY MESSAOUDI, ILHEM (contact); O'BRIEN, JOHN M Lexington, KY 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-034
Summary:

Opioid use during pregnancy is associated with harmful health outcomes for infants including preterm birth, neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome, and brain-related problems. This project will carry out an in-depth investigation of the effects of opioid use during pregnancy including changes to health of the placenta, inflammation in the fetus, as well as behavioral and movement-related outcomes during the first year of life. This research will contribute to fundamental knowledge about how the placenta and brain work together as well as identify new strategies for diagnosing, treating, and preventing opioid harm to the fetus and mother.   

1R01HD113032-01
Predicting Neonatal Health Outcomes From Placental and Fetal Brain Extracellular Vesicles in Pregnant Opioid Users Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NICHD UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON VOJTECH, LUCIA N (contact); CHIU, DANIEL T Seattle,WA 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-037
Summary:

Opioid use during pregnancy is associated with significant harmful health outcomes for infants including preterm birth, neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS), and impaired brain-related problems. Not all infants exposed to opioids develop NOWS, and there is a need for better diagnostic tests. This project will study specialized cell structures called vesicles that are released from the placenta, fetal brain, and central nervous system to communicate information about health of the fetus and placenta. This research on vesicles will be combined with data about NOWS diagnosis up to 1 month after birth. The research aims to generate molecular indicators (biomarkers) that predict which newborns develop NOWS, toward guiding safe and effective treatment for these newborns.

1R01HD113143-01
Association of Maternal, Fetal, and Placental Biomarkers with Neonatal Neuroimaging and Development Following In-Utero Opioid Exposure Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NICHD BOSTON MEDICAL CENTER WACHMAN, ELISHA Boston, MA 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-032
Summary:

Exposure of the developing fetus to opioids during pregnancy in women with opioid use disorder can lead to inefficient placenta function and impaired fetal brain development and neurodevelopmental outcomes. This project will measure molecules that circulate within maternal blood to identify specific indicators (biomarkers) of maternal health such as inflammation and changes in placental gene activity. The research will include a focus on specialized molecules released from the placenta called exosomes that carry information about the health of the placenta. These data will be combined with neurodevelopmental measures of infants at 1 year of age. Together, these studies will provide new molecular predictors (biomarkers) of placenta and fetal health.

1R01DA059321-01
Multimodal Fetal and Placental Imaging and Biomarkers of Clinical Outcomes in Opioid Use Disorder Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids The Biology of Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy and Effects on Early Neuro-Behavioral Development NIDA INDIANA UNIV-PURDUE UNIV AT INDIANAPOLIS RADHAKRISHNAN, RUPA Indianapolis, IN 2023
NOFO Title: HEAL Initiative: Opioid Exposure and Effects on Placenta Function, Brain Development, and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
NOFO Number: RFA-HD-23-035
Summary:

Opioid use during pregnancy is associated with significant harmful health outcomes for infants including preterm birth, neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome, and impaired brain-related problems. This project will combine advanced imaging of the fetal brain and placenta, genetics, and tissue and blood samples from the placenta to determine how opioid use during pregnancy affects development of the fetal brain and placenta. This research will provide novel and early molecular indicators (biomarkers) to as well as identify new strategies for diagnosing, treating, and preventing opioid harm to the fetus and mother.