Federal Grant Award Summary

Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago received a $2.45 million Project Grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) under the Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research program (CFDA 93.865) on July 3, 2026, with completion scheduled for June 30, 2029. This award funds a research project investigating the role of human milk metabolome and microRNAs (miRNAs) on metabolic health in breastfeeding children with and without perinatal HIV exposure.

The research leverages the Africa-based ORCHID (Obesogenic Origins of Maternal and Child Metabolic Health Involving Dolutegravir) study to examine how maternal HIV and antiretroviral therapy (ART) exposure affect human milk composition and subsequently impact infant growth and body composition. The project analyzes human milk samples from 500 participants (250 pregnant women living with HIV receiving tenofovir, lamivudine, and dolutegravir therapy and 250 HIV-seronegative pregnant women) and their children, using anthropometry and air displacement plethysmography to construct infant growth and adiposity trajectories over 24 months. The research addresses critical gaps in understanding how in utero and early-life HIV/ART exposure influences long-term metabolic health in millions of children worldwide, particularly in resource-limited settings.