Researcher from Health receives grant for fertility research
Associate Professor Anne Sofie Dam Laursen from Aarhus University and Aarhus University Hospital has received just over DKK 1.8 million to study whether folic acid can reduce the harmful effect of endocrine disruptors on women's chances of becoming pregnant as well as help prevent pregnancy loss.
Research shows that endocrine disruptors and heavy metals can reduce fertility and increase the risk of pregnancy loss – and that folic acid may reduce the harmful effects of these substances.
"Our knowledge in this area is still limited. That’s why we want to examine how simultaneous exposure to multiple endocrine disruptors such as PFAS and heavy metals affects women's fertility. And whether higher folic acid intake, whether from diet or supplements, is associated with a less harmful effect," says Anne Sofie Dam Laursen from the Department of Clinical Medicine.
She has just received a research grant from the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) of EUR 250,000.
Anne Sofie Dam Laursen will use the money to collect and analyse blood and urine samples from female participants in the SnartForældre.dk study, which examines factors that influence the ability to conceive and maintain a pregnancy naturally, without fertility treatment. The grant will also fund a two-year postdoc position.
Anne Sofie Dam Laursen will conduct the research project in collaboration with Professor Henrik Toft Sørensen, also from Aarhus University, and Professor Tina Kold Jensen from the University of Southern Denmark.
Contact
Associate Professor and PhD Anne Sofie Dam Laursen
Aarhus University, Department of Clinical Medicine, Department of Clinical Epidemiology
Aarhus University Hospital, Department of Clinical Epidemiology
Telephone: +45 87 16 72 37
Email: asdl@clin.au.dk