Maternal fatty acids, birth weight and child development

描述(由申请者提供)：本K23指导职业发展奖的申请包括重点学习课程、详细的研究计划和结构化的指导环境，旨在培训Emily Oken医学博士在面向患者的研究领域的职业生涯。Oken博士目前是普通内科研究员，她将利用她以前在营养和健康风险行为方面进行流行病学研究的经验，以及内科、妇女健康和儿科方面的临床专业知识。 妇女在怀孕期间的营养有助于决定其怀孕的结果以及她和她的孩子的终身健康。这项拟议的研究将考察女性在怀孕期间摄入的n-3和n-6脂肪酸的比例对胎儿生长、孕期和3岁以下儿童认知的影响。此外，还将确定摄入n-3和n-6脂肪酸比例较低的女性的特征，以帮助那些做出饮食选择和建议的人。 这项建议的数据是通过Viva项目收集的，这是一项由美国国立卫生研究院资助的对大约2700名孕妇及其子女进行的纵向前瞻性队列研究。Project Viva的前瞻性设计、大样本量和可用协变量信息的广度为拟议的分析提供了理想的基础。Viva项目的首席研究员Matthew Gillman博士将担任Oken博士研究的主要导师。此外，一个由营养流行病学、产前脂肪酸的影响、流行病学方法和生物统计学专家组成的咨询委员会将协助Oken博士处理研究设计和分析以及职业发展方面的问题。 Oken Wilt博士还在哈佛大学公共卫生学院参加课程，以发展营养流行病学的高级知识，特别是多不饱和脂肪酸对健康的影响，以及实施该项目所需的流行病学方法，如病例队列研究设计和纵向数据分析。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This application for a K23 Mentored Career Development Award incorporates a focused course of study, detailed research plan, and structured mentoring environment intended to train Emily Oken, MD, for a career in patient-oriented research. Dr. Oken, who is currently a General Internal Medicine research fellow, will draw upon her previous experience performing epidemiologic research focused upon nutrition and health risk behaviors, as well as clinical expertise in internal medicine, women's health, and pediatrics. A woman's nutrition during pregnancy helps determine the outcome of her pregnancy and the lifelong health of herself and her child. The proposed study will examine the effects of the ratio of n-3 to n-6 fatty acids consumed by a woman during pregnancy upon fetal growth, length of gestation, and child cognition through age 3 years. Additionally, characteristics of women who consume a low dietary ratio of n-3 to n-6 fatty acids will be identified, to help those making dietary choices and recommendations. Data for this proposal are being collected through Project Viva, an ongoing NIH-funded longitudinal prospective cohort study of approximately 2700 pregnant women and their children. The prospective design, large sample size, and breadth of available covariate information in Project Viva provide an ideal foundation for the proposed analyses. Dr. Matthew Gillman, the Principal Investigator for Project Viva, will serve as the primary mentor for Dr. Oken's research. Additionally, an Advisory Committee comprised of experts in nutritional epidemiology, the effects of prenatal fatty acids, epidemiologic methods, and biostatistics will assist Dr. Oken with issues of study design and analysis, as well as career development. Dr. Oken wilt also take courses at the Harvard School of Public Health to develop advanced knowledge of nutritional epidemiology, in particular the health effects of polyunsaturated fatty acids, and epidemiologic methods necessary for the implementation of this project, such as the case-cohort study design and analysis of longitudinal data.