Association between prenatal exposure to multiple persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and growth indicators in newborns.

Despite the fact that many of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been banned for decades, they still constitute a group of harmful substances to human health. Prenatal exposure can have adverse effects on one's health as well as on their newborns. The present cross-sectional study, which includes 87% of the births registered in La Palma Island (Canary Islands, Spain) during 2016 (n = 447), aims to evaluate the potential adverse health effects exerted by a wide range of POPs on newborns. We quantified blood cord levels of twenty organochlorine pesticides, eighteen polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), eight bromodiphenyl ethers (BDEs), and sixteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) using the method of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. By groups, p,p'-DDE, PCB-28, BDE-47, and phenanthrene were the most frequently detected compounds (median values = 0.148, 0.107, 0.065, and 0.380 ng/mL, respectively). p,p'-DDE was found to be significantly associated with an increase in neonatal birth weight, with a special emphasis on girls. An inverse association between PCB-28 and PCB-52 with birth weight was observed, and these associations were determined by the gender. A similar trend was obtained for BDE-47 but not for any of the PAHs. When assessing the effect of mixtures, boys exhibiting ≥ 3 OCPs were at lower risk of having higher birth weight (OR = 0.25; 95% CI = 0.07 - 0.89; P = 0.032). The effect of these pollutants on birth weight does not go in the same direction, a fact that is conditioned by several factors, including the chemical nature of the substance or the gender of the newborn. Additional research is needed to understand the role of POPs on fetal development.

Database of persistent organic pollutants in umbilical cord blood: Concentration of organochlorine pesticides, PCBs, BDEs and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been banned over the last decades for being damaged to the environment and to the health of humans and animals. However, due to their lipophilic nature and resistance to degradation, they are frequently detected in biological samples. Its presence has been associated with the increased risk of suffering from different diseases in human series, being newborns and children especially sensitive. The present data reports umbilical cord blood levels of twenty organochlorine pesticides (aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, o,p'-DDD, p,p'-DDD, o,p'-DDE, p,p'-DDE, o,p'-DDT, p,p'-DDT, endosulfan alfa, endosulfan beta, endosulfan sulphate, heptachlor, HCB, αHCH, ßHCH, δHCH, lindane, methoxychlor and mirex), eighteen polychlorinated biphenyls (congeners 28, 52, 77, 81, 101, 105, 114, 118, 123, 126, 138, 153, 156, 157, 167, 169, 180 and 189), eight bromodiphenyl ethers (congeners 28, 47, 85, 99, 100, 153, 154 and 183), and sixteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (acenaphthalene, acenaphthene, anthracene, benzo(a)anthracene, benzo(a)pyrene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo(g,h,i)perylene, benzo(k)fluoranthene, chrysene, dibenzo(a,h)anthracene, fluoranthene, fluorine, indene(1,2,3-cd)pyrene, naphthalene, phenanthrene and pyrene). A total of 447 samples, representing 86.6% of the total births during the recruited period (March 1, 2015, to April 30, 2016), were available for POP analyses. POPs were determined in a Gas Chromatography (GC) system equipped with an automated sampler (Models 7890B and 7693; Agilent Technologies, Palo Alto, CA, USA) for gas chromatographic separations. The detection of the analytes was performed using a Triple Quad 7010 mass spectrometer (Agilent Technologies). All of the measurements were performed as triplicate measurements, and the means were used for the calculations. Data are reported in ng/mL. The present data also includes birth parameters, including weight, length, cranial perimeter, Apgar score and congenital malformations, and data referred to mothers (harmful habits, chronic diseases, and anthropometric/demographic characteristics).

Occurrence of 44 elements in human cord blood and their association with growth indicators in newborns.

There is growing concern about environmental pollution produced by elements, including "emerging" contaminants, such as rare earth elements (REE) and other trace elements (TE), which are extensively and increasingly employed in the manufacture of consumer electronics. Previous research has shown that prenatal exposure to some elements (mainly heavy metals) may be associated with decreased fetal growth and other adverse birth outcomes. Recent studies have also shown that environmental exposure to REE and TE may be related to adverse effects on human health. This cross-sectional study, which included nearly 92% of the births in 2016 in La Palma (Canary Islands, Spain; n = 471), aimed to evaluate the potential adverse health effects exerted by a wide range of elements on newborns. We quantified the levels of 44 elements (including 26 REE and TE) in their umbilical cord blood. Our results showed low or very low levels of most elements. We found an inverse association between antimony (Sb) and birth weight (Spearman's r = -0.106, p = 0.021). A similar trend was observed between nickel (Ni) and birth weight and between chromium (Cr) and birth length, although in this case the significance was borderline. Bismuth appeared as a risk factor for having a birth weight below the tenth percentile in the univariate (OR = 3.30; 95% CI = 1.25-8.78; p = 0.017) and multivariate analyses (OR = 5.20; 95% CI = 1.29-20.91; p = 0.020). When assessing the effect of element mixtures, the sum of Cr, Ni, and Sb appeared as a risk factor for having a birth weight below the tenth percentile in the univariate (OR = 2.41; 95% CI = 1.08-5.35; p = 0.031) and multivariate analyses (OR = 3.84; 95% CI = 1.42-10.39; p = 0.008). Our findings suggest that some inorganic elements-isolated or in mixture-are associated to a lower fetal growth. Additional research is needed to understand the role of inorganic pollutants on fetal development.