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Maternal/fetal metabolomes appear to mediate the impact of arsenic exposure on birth weight: A pilot study

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 27, pages 313–319 (2017)Cite this article

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Abstract

Arsenic exposure has been associated with low birth weight. However, the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. Alterations to metabolites may act as causal mediators of the effect of arsenic exposure on low birth weight. This pilot study aimed to explore the role of metabolites in mediating the association of arsenic exposure on infant birth weight. Study samples were selected from a well-established prospectively enrolled cohort in Bangladesh comprising 35 newborns and a subset of 20 matched mothers. Metabolomics profiling was performed on 35 cord blood samples and 20 maternal peripheral blood samples collected during the second trimester of pregnancy. Inorganic arsenic (iAs) exposure was evaluated via cord blood samples and maternal toenail samples collected during the first trimester. Multiple linear regression and mediation analyses were used to explore the relationship between iAs exposure, metabolite alterations, and low birth weight. Cord blood arsenic level was correlated with elevated levels of 17-methylstearate, laurate (12:0) and 4-vinylphenol sulfate along with lower birth weight. Prenatal maternal toenail iAs level was associated with two peripheral blood metabolites (butyrylqlycine and tartarate), which likely contributed to higher cord blood iAs levels both independently and interactively. Findings of this pilot study indicate that both intrauterine and maternal peripheral blood metabolites appear to influence the toxic effect of inorganic arsenic exposure on low birth weight.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge Nicola Lupoli, Ivan Pantic, Shangzhi Gao, Jongeun Rhee, Pi-I (Debby) Lin, Sakila (Joya) Afroz and Hafiza (Suchanda) Sultana for laboratory support. This study was supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) (P30ES000002 and ES0015533 to DCC); the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81402764 to YW, 81402763 to RZ, 81473070 and 81530088 to FC); and the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu, China (No. BK20140907 to YW). The work was also partially supported by a project funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD) and the Outstanding Young Teachers Training Program of Nanjing Medical University.

Author contributions

YW, FC and DCC were responsible for the study’s conception; YW and QS performed the study design, data analyses and wrote the manuscript; QQ, MR, ZW and LS collected the samples, processed the samples for analysis and performed the arsenic level evaluation; RZ contributed to the discussion and revised the manuscript. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.

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Author notes

  1. Yongyue Wei and Qianwen Shi: These authors contributed equally to this work.

  2. David C Christiani: Senior author.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biostatistics, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Modern Toxicology, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China

    Yongyue Wei, Qianwen Shi, Ruyang Zhang & Feng Chen

  2. Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Yongyue Wei, Zhaoxi Wang, Ruyang Zhang, Li Su & David C Christiani

  3. Joint Laboratory of Health and Environmental Risk Assessment (HERA), Nanjing Medical University School of Public Health/Harvard School of Public Health, Nanjing, China,

    Yongyue Wei, Ruyang Zhang, Feng Chen & David C Christiani

  4. Dhaka Community Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Quazi Quamruzzaman & Mahmuder Rahman

  5. Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

    David C Christiani

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  1. Yongyue Wei
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Correspondence to Feng Chen or David C Christiani.

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Wei, Y., Shi, Q., Wang, Z. et al. Maternal/fetal metabolomes appear to mediate the impact of arsenic exposure on birth weight: A pilot study. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 27, 313–319 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2016.74

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