In Utero Exposure to Compounds with Dioxin-like Activity and Birth Outcomes
Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › peer-review
BACKGROUND: Maternal exposure to dioxins and dioxin-like compounds may affect fetal growth and development. We evaluated the association between in utero dioxin-like activity and birth outcomes in a prospective European mother-child study.
METHODS: We measured dioxin-like activity in maternal and cord blood plasma samples collected at delivery using the Dioxin-Responsive Chemically Activated LUciferase eXpression (DR CALUX) bioassay in 967 mother-child pairs, in Denmark, Greece, Norway, Spain, and England. Multiple linear regression models were used to investigate the associations with birth weight, gestational age, and head circumference.
RESULTS: Plasma dioxin-like activity was higher in maternal sample than in cord samples. Birth weight was lower with medium (-58 g [95% confidence interval (CI) = -176 to 62]) and high (-82 g [-216 to 53]) tertiles of exposure (cord blood) compared with the lowest tertile. Gestational age was shorter by approximately half a week in the highest compared with the lowest (-0.4 weeks [95% CI = -0.8 to -0.1]). This association was stronger in boys than in girls, although the statistical evidence for interaction was weak (P = 0.22). Analysis based on CALUX-toxic equivalents expressed per milliliter of plasma showed similar trends. We found no association between dioxin-like activity in maternal plasma and birth outcomes.
CONCLUSIONS: Results from this international general population study suggest an association between low-level prenatal dioxin-like activity and shorter gestational age, particularly in boys, with weaker associations for birth weight.
Original language | English |
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Journal | Epidemiology (Cambridge, Mass.) |
Volume | 25 |
Issue number | 2 |
Pages (from-to) | 215-24 |
Number of pages | 10 |
ISSN | 1044-3983 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Mar 2014 |
- Adult, Biological Assay, Birth Weight, Dioxins, Environmental Pollutants, Europe, Female, Fetal Blood, Gestational Age, Humans, Infant, Newborn, Linear Models, Male, Maternal Exposure, Pregnancy, Premature Birth, Prospective Studies, Sex Factors
Research areas
ID: 137757721