Publications by authors named "Zhanghua Chen"

Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates how air pollution exposure before conception affects childhood weight and BMI growth in children up to 2 years old in Shanghai, China.
  • It finds that higher levels of certain air pollutants (PM and NO) during the preconception period are linked to increased BMI and weight in children.
  • The research indicates that younger mothers and those with pre-existing overweight/obesity experience a greater impact from preconception air pollution exposure on their children's growth trajectories.
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  • Most people in the US are exposed to PFAS, which can lead to health risks, especially in low-income communities near PFAS-polluting facilities.
  • In a study in Southern California, researchers connected PFAS levels in plasma samples with data on water contamination, food access, and pollution sources to analyze exposure impacts.
  • Results showed that higher PFAS levels in drinking water and the presence of Superfund sites increased PFAS concentrations in participants' blood, highlighting the need to address PFAS exposure in disadvantaged areas.
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Background: Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination may disrupt sleep through disrupted metabolic and immune functions. The study aims to investigate the association and potential mechanism between PFAS and sleep.

Methods: We included 136 young adults recruited between 2014-2018 and 76 were re-assessed between 2020-2022.

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  • Latin Americans are often overlooked in genetic studies, which can widen gaps in personalized medicine due to the challenges of accessing genetic data and consent processes.
  • The Genetics of Latin American Diversity (GLAD) Project compiles genetic information from over 53,000 individuals across various regions to explore diverse ancestry and gene flow in the Americas.
  • GLAD includes a tool called GLAD-match to align external genetic samples with its database while protecting individual privacy, thus supporting more inclusive genomic research and enhancing personalized medicine for Latin Americans.
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Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects over 10 % of the global population and can lead to kidney failure and death. Exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is associated with increased risk of CKD, yet studies examining the mechanisms linking PFAS and kidney function are lacking. In this exploratory study, we examined longitudinal associations of PFAS exposure with kidney function, and tested if associations were mediated by altered gut bacterial taxa or plasma metabolites using a multi-omics mediation analysis.

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In this study, associations between prenatal exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from 9 sources and development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were assessed in a population-based retrospective pregnancy cohort in southern California. The cohort included 318,750 mother-child singleton pairs.

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While fine particulate matter (PM) has been associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), few studies focused on ultrafine particles (PM). Given that fine and ultrafine particles can be highly correlated due to shared emission sources, challenges remain to distinguish their health effects. In a retrospective cohort of 318,371 mother-child pairs (4549 ASD cases before age 5) in Southern California, pregnancy average PM and PM were estimated using a California-based chemical transport model and assigned to residential addresses.

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Mitophagy is a major quality control pathway that removes unwanted or dysfunctional mitochondria and plays an essential role in vascular health. Here we show that MCM8 expression is significantly decreased in children with Kawasaki disease (KD) who developed coronary artery aneurysms. Mechanistically, we discovered that nitric oxide signaling promotes TRIM21-mediated MCM8 ubiquitination, which disrupts its interaction with MCM9 and promotes its cytosolic export.

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Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder with symptoms that range from social and communication impairments to restricted interests and repetitive behavior and is the 4th most disabling condition for children aged 5-14. Risk factors of ASD are not fully understood. Environmental risk factors are believed to play a significant role in the ASD epidemic.

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  • Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have successfully identified genes linked to telomere length, but previous research hadn't validated these findings until now.
  • In a large analysis involving over 211,000 people, the study discovered five new signals linked to telomere length and highlighted the importance of blood/immune cells in this area.
  • The researchers confirmed that the genes KBTBD6 and POP5 truly affect telomere length by demonstrating that manipulating these genes can lengthen telomeres and that their regulation is crucial for understanding telomere biology.
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Neonates are susceptible to inflammatory disorders such as necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) due to their immature immune system. The timely appearance of regulatory immune cells in early life contributes to the control of inflammation in neonates, yet the underlying mechanisms of which remain poorly understood. In this study, we identified a subset of neonatal monocytes characterized by high levels of neuropilin-1 (Nrp1), termed Nrp1 monocytes.

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To assess cardiometabolic profiles and proteomics to identify biomarkers associated with the metabolically healthy and unhealthy obesity. Young adults (N = 156) enrolled were classified as not having obesity, metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) and metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUHO) based on NCEP ATP-III criteria. Plasma proteomics at study entry were measured using Olink Cardiometabolic Explore panel.

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Background: Strong epidemiological evidence shows positive associations between exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and adverse cardiometabolic outcomes (e.g., diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia).

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The assessment of "omics" signatures may contribute to personalized medicine and precision nutrition. However, the existing literature is still limited in the homogeneity of participants' characteristics and in limited assessments of integrated omics layers. Our objective was to use post-prandial metabolomics and fasting proteomics to identify biological pathways and functions associated with diet quality in a population of primarily Hispanic young adults.

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Aneuploidy, a deviation of the chromosome number from euploidy, is one of the hallmarks of cancer. High levels of aneuploidy are generally correlated with metastasis and poor prognosis in cancer patients. However, the causality of aneuploidy in cancer metastasis remains to be explored.

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Background: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are pollutants linked to adverse health effects. Diet is an important source of PFAS exposure, yet it is unknown how diet impacts longitudinal PFAS levels.

Objective: To determine if dietary intake and food sources were associated with changes in blood PFAS concentrations among Hispanic young adults at risk of metabolic diseases.

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  • - This study explores how growth patterns during puberty relate to future health outcomes by analyzing height data from about 56,000 individuals across various ancestries using a technique called SITAR.
  • - The researchers identified 26 significant genetic loci linked to height growth during puberty and found that different growth rates are associated with various health risks, like type 2 diabetes and heart conditions.
  • - The findings suggest that there are multiple growth trajectories during puberty, each influencing adult health differently, indicating that no single growth pattern is the "best" for lifelong health outcomes.
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Background: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) may impair bone development in adolescence, which impacts life-long bone health. No previous studies have examined prospective associations of individual PFAS and their mixture with bone mineral density (BMD) changes in Hispanic young persons, a population at high risk of osteoporosis in adulthood.

Objectives: To examine associations of individual PFAS and PFAS mixtures with longitudinal changes in BMD in an adolescent Hispanic cohort and examine generalizability of findings in a mixed-ethnicity young adult cohort (58.

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  • This study examines how exposure to greenery affects birth weight, focusing on specific time periods during pregnancy.
  • Researchers analyzed data from nearly 14,000 pregnant women and their babies in Shanghai between 2016 and 2019, using vegetation indices to evaluate greenness exposure.
  • Findings indicate that greater exposure to greenery, especially in the second trimester, is linked to higher birth weight, with stronger effects observed in urban areas and among those lacking nearby parks.
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Objective: Prediabetes in young people is an emerging epidemic that disproportionately impacts Hispanic populations. We aimed to develop a metabolite-based prediction model for prediabetes in young people with overweight/obesity at risk for type 2 diabetes.

Research Design And Methods: In independent, prospective cohorts of Hispanic youth (discovery; n = 143 without baseline prediabetes) and predominately Hispanic young adults (validation; n = 56 without baseline prediabetes), we assessed prediabetes via 2-h oral glucose tolerance tests.

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Importance: Family socioeconomic status has been associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnoses. Less is known regarding the role of neighborhood disadvantage in the United States, particularly when children have similar access to health insurance.

Objective: To evaluate the association between neighborhood disadvantage and the diagnosis of ASD and potential effect modification by maternal and child demographic characteristics.

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Background: Few studies have assessed air pollution exposure association with birthweight during both preconception and gestational periods.

Methods: Leveraging a preconception cohort consisting of 14220 pregnant women and newborn children in Shanghai, China during 2016-2018, we aim to assess associations of NO and PM exposure, derived from high-resolution spatial-temporal models, during preconception and gestational periods with outcomes including term birthweight, birthweight Z-score, small-for-gestational age (SGA) and large-for-gestational age (LGA). Linear and logistic regressions were used to estimate 3-month preconception and trimester-averaged air pollution exposure associations; and distributed lag models (DLM) were used to identify critical exposure windows at the weekly resolution from preconception to delivery.

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