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. 2023 Jun 23;20(13):6211.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph20136211.

Maternal Exposure to Potentially Toxic Metals and Birth Weight: Preliminary Results from the DSAN-12M Birth Cohort in the Recôncavo Baiano, Brazil

Homègnon A Ferréol Bah  1   2 , Nathália R Dos Santos  2   3 , Erival A Gomes Junior  4 , Daisy O Costa  2   3 , Victor O Martinez  3 , Elis Macêdo Pires  2 , João V Araújo Santana  2 , Filipe da Silva Cerqueira  2 , José A Menezes-Filho  1   2   3
Affiliations

Maternal Exposure to Potentially Toxic Metals and Birth Weight: Preliminary Results from the DSAN-12M Birth Cohort in the Recôncavo Baiano, Brazil

Homègnon A Ferréol Bah et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Prenatal exposure to potentially toxic metals (PTM) may impair fetal growth (FG). We investigated the relationship between maternal exposure to lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd) and manganese (Mn) and birth weight (BW) of 74 newborns. Blood was collected during the second trimester of pregnancy to determine Pb (PbB) and Cd (CdB), while hair (MnH) and toenails (MnTn) were used for Mn. Samples were analyzed by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry (GFAAS). Sociodemographic and BW data were collected from questionnaires and maternity records, respectively. The medians (P25th-P75th) of PbB, CdB, MnH, and MnTn were, respectively, 0.9 (0.5-1.8) µg/dL; 0.54 (0.1-0.8) µg/L; 0.18 (0.1-0.4) µg/g; and 0.65 (0.37-1.22) µg/g. The means (standard deviation) of birth weight according to sex were 3067 (426.3) and 3442 (431) grams, respectively, for girls and boys. MnTn presented an inverse correlation with the BW/gestational age ratio for girls (rho = -0.478; p = 0.018), suggesting the effect of sex modification. Although BW correlation with CdB was not statistically significant, hierarchical linear regression (beta = -2.08; 95% CI-4.58 to 0.41) suggested a fetotoxic effect. These results confirmed the threat PTMs may represent and the need for more extensive research to elucidate their role in inadequate FG in developing countries.

Keywords: birth weight; fetal growth; potentially toxic metals (PTM); sex-specific effect of PTMs.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of the four components of the ecological context considered in our research based on the explored variables. Due to their completeness, the underlined variables were those considered in our regression model. Adapted from Victoria et al. [33] and Bah et al. [31].
Figure 2
Figure 2
Scatter plot showing the distribution of the birth weight/GA ratio as a function of the log of biomarkers, separated by newborns’ sex.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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