Prenatal Heavy Metal Exposure and Newborn Leucocyte Telomere Length: A Birth-Cohort Study in Myanmar

摘要

Background: Arsenic, cadmium and lead are associated with telomere length (TL) maintenance in adults. Although they are confirmed to have trans-placental circulation, the effect of prenatal exposure of those metals on newborn TL is unknown. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine whether prenatal heavy metal exposure has an impact on newborn leucocyte TL. Methods: A birth-cohort study was conducted with 409 pregnant women and their newborns in Myanmar. During the first visit, face to face interviews were performed and maternal spot urine samples were collected. Cord blood samples were collected during follow-up. Urinary heavy metal concentration was measured by ICP-MS and adjusted for creatinine. Relative TL was measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The extent of prenatal arsenic, cadmium and lead exposure and their associations with newborn leucocyte TL were assessed using multivariate linear regression. Results: The median values of maternal urinary arsenic, cadmium, and lead concentrations were 73.8, 0.9, and 1.8 μg/g creatinine, respectively. Prenatal arsenic and cadmium exposure was significantly associated with newborn TL shortening (coefficient = - 0.13, 95% CI: - 0.22, - 0.03, p = 0.002, and coefficient = - 0.17,95% CI: - 0.27, - 0.07, p = 0.001, respectively), and the associations remained robust after adjusting for confounders. However, there was no significant association between prenatal lead exposure and newborn TL. Conclusion: The present study identified the effect of arsenic and cadmium exposure on TL shortening, even in utero exposure at a lower concentration.