USC/Keck Awarded $6 Million Environmental Grant

The Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California has received a $6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to examine environmental factors related to asthma and obesity.

The two-year grant will explore the connections between air pollution and exposure to toxic metals and those two medical conditions, both of which have grown in size in the U.S. in recent years.

“We are becoming increasingly aware that different environmental exposures occurring early in life, even prenatally, have the potential to cause lasting harm to children as they grow into adults,” said Carrie Breton, M.D., a Keck assistant professor of preventive medicine.

Research partners include Cal State Los Angeles and UC Irvine, among others.

“This grant reinforces the commitment our faculty scientists have made to the investigation of environmental pollutants and their impact on the health of children,” said Rohit Varma, M.D., interim dean of the Keck School of Medicine. I am delighted that the NIH has recognized the potential of their research and funded them for this important study.”