NIEHS extramural global environmental health portfolio: opportunities for collaboration.
BACKGROUND
Global environmental health has emerged as a critical topic for environmental health researchers and practitioners. Estimates of the environmental contribution of total worldwide disease burden range from 25 to 33%.


OBJECTIVE
We reviewed grants funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) during 2005-2007 to evaluate the costs and scientific composition of the global environmental health portfolio, with the ultimate aim of strengthening global environmental health research partnerships.


RESULTS
We examined NIEHS grant research databases to identify the global environmental health portfolio. In the past 3 fiscal years (2005-2007), the NIEHS funded 57 scientific research projects in 37 countries, at an estimated cost of $30 million. Metals such as arsenic, methylmercury, and lead are the most frequently studied toxic agents, but a wide range of stressors, routes of exposure, and agents are addressed in the portfolio.


CONCLUSIONS
The portfolio analysis indicates that there is a firm foundation of research activities upon which additional global environmental health partnerships could be encouraged. Current data structures could be strengthened to support more automated analysis of grantee information.
Drew
Christina H
CH
Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27709, USA. drewc@niehs.nih.gov
Barnes
Martha I
MI
Phelps
Jerry
J
Van Houten
Bennett
B
D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D004787:Environmental Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014943:Global Health; D006801:Humans; D008670:Metals / Q000633:toxicity; D012106:Research / Q000458:organization & administration*; D012109:Research Support as Topic
D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D008670:Metals