Dr. Chen Receives $3 Million in Grant Funding

Dr. Chen Receives
$3 Million in Grant Funding
Home>News>Chen Receives Grants

Zhao Chen, PhD, MPH, Associate Professor in Epidemiology and Biostatistics Division of the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, has recently been awarded two R01 research project grants by the National Institute on Aging.

The first grant is on “Anemia and Its Relationship with Sarcopenia, Physical Function and Mortality.” The second is a five-year project worth over 3 million dollars entitled “Biomarkers and Genetic Factors Related to Sarcopenia in Women.” Both grants are extremely competitive. Congressman Raul M. Grijalva has sent a personal congratulation letter to Dr. Chen saying “you should take pride in this recognition."

In the first study, the causes and health sequelae of anemia in multiethnic groups of older women will be investigated. Anemia in the elderly is highly prevalent, functionally significant and prognostically important. The prevalence of anemia varies by ethnicity, providing evidence for significant race-ethnicity related health disparity. However, the understanding of the pathophysiology, natural history, and racial and ethnic disparities of causes and health outcomes of anemia among the elderly is very limited. Dr. Chen’s research will help fill in these knowledge gaps and redefine anemic cutoff points for older women from different ethnic backgrounds.

In the second project, Dr. Chen’s group will assess biological and environmental risk factors for sarcopenia (low skeletal muscle mass) among Hispanic and Non-Hispanic white elderly women. Skeletal muscle is the primary determinant of age-related differences in strength and energy expenditure contributing to frailty and declines in basal metabolic rates in men and women. Loss of skeletal muscle mass in the elderly increases an individual’s risk for bone loss, falls, insulin insensitivity, and diminished aerobic capacity with aging. Hispanic women are at higher risk for sarcopenia in comparison to non-Hispanic white women.

Dr. Chen’s study is considered highly significant and will make a great contribution to the diagnosis, prevention and treatment on muscle loss by understanding the contribution of inflammatory and growth factors, genes, and gene and environment interactions to the development of sarcopenia.

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