Research Grant
[Cite as https://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/465455]Researchers: Prof Michael Davies (Principal investigator) , A/Pr Bianca De Stavola , E/Pr Jeffrey Robinson , Prof Robert Norman , Prof Vivienne Moore
Brief description A compelling raft of studies has now shown that low birth weight predisposes to later, impaired glucose tolerance, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and high cholesterol. The associations are clearly evident even after adjusting for important lifestyle factors, occupation, income, adult diet and socio-economic status. This has resulted in a new paradigm for understanding the transmission of disease risk from one generation to the next. A team of researchers based at the University of Adelaide led by Dr Davies has gained international recognition for being at the forefront of this research. Thirty years ago, the group established the Lucina cohort to study intergenerational health among women, and how conditions in pregnancy can affect the reproductive health of offspring in successive generations. Dr Davies and his team of researchers will expand this study in ways that were designed at the outset, but not commenced until now. This includes enrolling the traced mothers to study how their clinical experiences in pregnancy predict their own later risk of diabetes. We will also be seeking to enrol the siblings of the daughters so that we can identify events in pregnancies that predict which sibling is at increased risk of diabetes. Finally, the study will enrol the grandchildren and trace their birth records so that we can study the relationship between diabetes risk, intergenerational growth and how that risk can be substantially influenced by factors as basic as pre-pregnancy body weight and weight gain in pregnancy. The objective of this research is to grow healthier Australian babies, children and thereby healthier adults.
Funding Amount $AUD 2,095,468.97
Funding Scheme NHMRC Strategic Awards
Notes A Healthy Start to Life (for All Australians)
- nhmrc : 465455
- PURL : https://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/465455
