zes a five-year training program for the development of the academic career of Dr. Sarbattama Sen in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine. Dr. Sen has already shown that she is committed to becoming a leader in the field of maternal obesity research. This career training award would allow her to pursue formal training through a Master's degree in Clinical and Translational Research, with a focus on designing interventions and conducting clinical trials to improve maternal and neonatal outcomes in obese pregnancy. She will benefit from the experience of an expert mentoring team. Her primary mentor will be Dr. Simin Meydani, Professor of Nutrition and Immunology at Tufts University and a renowned expert in micronutrient intervention studies. Her co-mentors will be Dr. Marlene Goldman, an expert in antioxidant interventions and reproductive health, Dr. David Greenblatt, an expert in pharmacologic interventions and obesity and Dr. Norma Terrin, an expert in clinical trial design. Dr. Diana Bianchi and Dr. Jonathan Davis will serve as career mentors. The academic environment at Tufts University and The Department of Pediatrics at Tufts Medical Center/Floating Hospital for Children is an ideal training environment, with an established track record of successfully transitioning junior faculty to independent researchers. In addition, Tufts University and the Jean Mayer USDA HNRCA provide an unparalleled combination of resources, core facilities, intellectual expertise and potential collaborations in nutrition and obesity research. The proposed research project, """"""""BMI-based prenatal vitamins to ameliorate oxidative stress in obese pregnancy,"""""""" is a novel intervention aimed at decreasing oxidative stress and inflammation, key abnormalities in the intrauterine milieu of obese pregnancy. Dr. Sen previously identified the importance of oxidative stress in the causative pathway of intergenerational obesity in an animal model, and her pilot data shows that oxidative stress is markedly increased, and antioxidant defenses markedly depleted, in obese pregnant women. This trial is a logical extension of this previous work. Her central hypothesis is that obese pregnancy is characterized by an oxidant/antioxidant imbalance, which increases inflammation and adversely impacts maternal health and neonatal outcome. Restoring oxidant/antioxidant balance with a body mass index-based prenatal micronutrient supplement will decrease oxidative stress and inflammation and improve both maternal and neonatal outcomes in obese pregnancy. This hypothesis will be tested in a randomized controlled trial in obese pregnant women. Given its overwhelming current and future impact, innovative approaches to diminish the effect of maternal obesity on future generations are of paramount public health importance.

Public Health Relevance

One out of three pregnant women is obese, predisposing the next generation to obesity and metabolic dysregulation. Interventions to ameliorate the adverse effects of obese pregnancy are of paramount importance in arresting the propagation of this vicious cycle. Since oxidant/antioxidant balance appears to play a critical role in trans generational obesity, a BMI-based antioxidant vitamin supplement will be given to obese mothers during pregnancy and biochemical and clinical outcomes will be followed, making the proposed study a safe and inexpensive approach to significantly impact a condition that the WHO has stated is the most important public health problem facing the world today. Project Narrative Page 1 of 1

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NICHD)
Type
Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23)
Project #
1K23HD074648-01A1
Application #
8581677
Study Section
Pediatrics Subcommittee (CHHD)
Program Officer
Raiten, Daniel J
Project Start
2013-07-15
Project End
2018-06-30
Budget Start
2013-07-15
Budget End
2014-06-30
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2013
Total Cost
$133,530
Indirect Cost
$8,780
Name
Tufts University
Department
Type
DUNS #
079532263
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02111
Sen, Sarbattama; Benjamin, Charis; Riley, Jennifer et al. (2018) Donor Milk Utilization for Healthy Infants: Experience at a Single Academic Center. Breastfeed Med 13:28-33
Belfort, Mandy Brown; Drouin, Kaitlin; Riley, Jennifer F et al. (2018) Prevalence and Trends in Donor Milk Use in the Well-Baby Nursery: A Survey of Northeast United States Birth Hospitals. Breastfeed Med 13:34-41
Sen, S; Rifas-Shiman, S L; Shivappa, N et al. (2018) Associations of prenatal and early life dietary inflammatory potential with childhood adiposity and cardiometabolic risk in Project Viva. Pediatr Obes 13:292-300
Sen, Sarbattama; Penfield-Cyr, Annie; Hollis, Bruce W et al. (2017) Maternal Obesity, 25-Hydroxy Vitamin D Concentration, and Bone Density in Breastfeeding Dyads. J Pediatr 187:147-152.e1
van der Burg, Jelske W; Sen, Sarbattama; Chomitz, Virginia R et al. (2016) The role of systemic inflammation linking maternal BMI to neurodevelopment in children. Pediatr Res 79:3-12
Panagos, P G; Vishwanathan, R; Penfield-Cyr, A et al. (2016) Breastmilk from obese mothers has pro-inflammatory properties and decreased neuroprotective factors. J Perinatol 36:284-90
Sen, Sarbattama; Rifas-Shiman, Sheryl L; Shivappa, Nitin et al. (2016) Dietary Inflammatory Potential during Pregnancy Is Associated with Lower Fetal Growth and Breastfeeding Failure: Results from Project Viva. J Nutr 146:728-36