The University of Texas at Arlington Office of Media Relations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact: Sue Stevens, Senior Media Relations Officer, 817-272-3317, sstevens@uta.edu

ARLINGTON - Purnendu Dasgupta, chair of the Department of Chemistry at The University of Texas at Arlington, is seeking volunteers to assist with research on environmental perchlorate, a substance that inhibits the body's iodine uptake. Iodine is an essential element necessary for brain development in children. 

"Iodine deficiency is the single most preventable form of mental retardation, and it is critical to the developing fetus and infant," Dasgupta said.

New mothers are being sought to help determine how much iodine infants receive through nutrition. Volunteers will be paid $50 to provide a sample of their infants' urine, along with a sample of the milk used in feeding. Researchers are interested in exclusively breast milk-fed or exclusively formula-fed infants, especially soy-based formula.

Contact Martina Kroll at 817-272-0442 or martinakroll@uta.edu for information. Collection supplies will be furnished.

This study is representative of the research under way at UT Arlington, an institution of 28,000 students on its way to becoming a nationally recognized, top-tier research university. 

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