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Enrolling by Invitation

NCT Number: NCT05368493

Air Pollution and Development in the Boricua Youth Study

This study seeks to understand the relationship between prenatal maternal air pollution exposure and offspring risk for ADHD and examine two potential -modifiable- mechanisms: prenatal maternal inflammation and offspring sleep problems. We will employ a longitudinal neuroimaging study design and leverage a well-characterized intergenerational cohort of Puerto Ricans to address prior literature's limitations. This will be the first study to use infant neuroimaging to disassociate the effects of prenatal pollution exposure from those of postnatal pollution exposure, adversity and disadvantage, and offspring genetic risk for ADHD.

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Key information

Conditions

Pollution; Exposure Mental Disorders Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Age range

6 month–11 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

New York State Psychiatric Institute

New York, 10032, United States

About this study

The NYSPI site is currently paused and has been paused since an institutional pause on human subjects research began in June, 2023.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Human Research Protections (OHRP) issued an FWA restriction on NYSPI research that also included a pause of human subjects research as of June 23, 2023.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Having been enrolled in the BYS-ECHO birth cohort (parent study).
  • Speaks English or Spanish.
  • Having a parent that is eligible to participate, based on criterial detailed below, and agrees to participation.
  • One parent must speak English or Spanish.

Exclusion criteria

  • Having serious neurological disorder, excluding ASD (e.g., seizure disorder).
  • MRI contraindications (irremovable metal in body like braces, pacemakers).
  • Claustrophobia.
  • Having a parent that is not competent to consent (e.g., severe intellectual disability would have triggered exclusion) or under 18 years of age.

Treatment and study plan

MRI task

Other

Task fMRI (Simon) [ Time Frame: Children will undergo MRI scans when they are 6-11 years of age. ] Children will also complete a task, which will allow exploratory analyses of the functionality of attention-related neural circuits. The Simon fMRI task is a non-verbal task equivalent to the Stroop that tests sustained attention and inhibitory control and discriminates children with and without ADHD. Exploratory fMRI time-series data for each participant will be modeled using a general linear model with 3 predictors: congruent correct, incongruent correct, and incorrect. Contrast images for each participant (e.g., incongruent-minus-congruent) will be generated and entered into a group-level random-effects model. Analyses are exploratory, and will focus on frontal lobe activity during each type of trial.

Primary outcomes

  1. Frontal lobe and corpus callosum volumes

    Time frame: Children will be scanned either at 6-36 months or 6-11 years of age, depending on when the participants are enrolled.

    Frontal lobe and corpus callosum volumes in will be measure in offspring. Bilateral middle frontal cortex and corpus callosum volumes will be used in hypothesis testing.

Other outcomes

  1. Exploratory- Task fMRI (Simon)

    Time frame: Children will undergo MRI scans when they are 6-11 years of age.

    Children will also complete a task, which will allow exploratory analyses of the functionality of attention-related neural circuits. The Simon fMRI task is a non-verbal task equivalent to the Stroop that tests sustained attention and inhibitory control and discriminates children with and without ADHD. Exploratory fMRI time-series data for each participant will be modeled using a general linear model with 3 predictors: congruent correct, incongruent correct, and incorrect. Contrast images for each participant (e.g., incongruent-minus-congruent) will be generated and entered into a group-level random-effects model. Analyses are exploratory, and will focus on frontal lobe activity during each type of trial.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

New York State Psychiatric Institute

Other

Collaborators

  • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
  • University of Puerto Rico

Registry information

Official study title

Prenatal Air Pollution and Neurodevelopment: a Longitudinal Neuroimaging Study of Mechanisms and Early Risk for ADHD in Puerto Rican Children

Important dates

Study start
2023
Primary completion
2028
Study completion
2028
First posted
May 10, 2022
Registry last updated
Feb 12, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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