Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 29, 2026
A Murine Model of Fetal Exposure to Maternal Inflammation to Study the Effects of Acute Chorioamnionitis on Newborn Intestinal Development
Published on: June 24, 2020
Trans-placental exposure of neonates to acrylamide--a pilot study
T Schettgen1, B Kütting, M Hornig
1Institute and Outpatient Clinic of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Schillerstrasse 25/29, 91054 Erlangen, Germany.
Insights
Newborn infants are exposed to the food toxicant acrylamide (AA) through their mothers, with neonates of smokers receiving higher doses. This trans-placental exposure raises concerns due to potential risks during critical development.
Area of Science:
- Toxicology
- Environmental Health
- Perinatal Medicine
Background:
- Acrylamide (AA) is a food-borne toxicant formed during high-temperature cooking of carbohydrate-rich foods.
- It is a potential human carcinogen, necessitating investigation into exposure pathways.
- Trans-placental transfer and its effects on neonates are of significant public health concern.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the trans-placental exposure of newborn infants to acrylamide (AA).
- To analyze the specific hemoglobin adduct of AA (N-2-carbamoylethylvaline, AAV) in maternal and umbilical cord blood.
- To assess biochemical effects and dose in neonates compared to mothers.
Main Methods:
- Blood samples from 11 pregnant women (1 smoker, 10 non-smokers) and their neonates' umbilical cord blood were analyzed.
- Quantification of the AA hemoglobin adduct (AAV) and smoking-specific adduct (CEV) using established detection limits.
- Statistical analysis of adduct levels and correlation between maternal and neonatal samples.
Main Results:
- AAV adducts were detected in all maternal and neonatal blood samples.
- Median AAV levels were 21 pmol/g globin in mothers and 10 pmol/g globin in neonates.
- Significantly higher AAV and CEV levels were found in a smoking mother and her infant.
Conclusions:
- A strong correlation (r=0.859) exists between AAV adduct levels in non-smoking mothers and their neonates.
- Neonatal AAV levels are approximately 50% of maternal levels, suggesting comparable relative internal doses.
- Trans-placental AA exposure is a concern due to high fetal cell-replication rates, with smoking mothers posing a greater risk to neonates.
Objectives:
Acrylamide (AA) (CAS No 79-06-1) has most recently been identified as a food-borne toxicant generated during the heating process of starch-containing foods. It was the aim of the present study to investigate the trans-placental exposure of newborn infants to this possible human carcinogen by analysis of the specific haemoglobin adduct of AA ( N-2-carbamoylethylvaline, AAV) in the blood of mothers and the corresponding umbilical cord blood of neonates as a parameter of biochemical effects.
Methods:
We investigated the blood of 11 women advanced in pregnancy (one smoker, ten non-smokers) and the corresponding umbilical cord blood of neonates for the N-terminal haemoglobin adducts of AA (AAV) and the smoking-specific adduct of acrylonitrile (CAS No 107-13-1) ( N-cyanoethylvaline, CEV). The limit of detection (LOD) was 5 pmol/g globin for AAV and 4 pmol/g globin for CEV.
Results:
AAV could be determined in all blood samples of the mothers (median 21 pmol/g globin, range 18-104 pmol/g globin) as well as in the umbilical cord blood of neonates (median 10 pmol/g globin, range 6-43 pmol/g globin). The highest values were detected in the blood of the smoking mother and her child. CEV was detected only in the blood of the smoking mother (185 pmol/g globin) and the corresponding umbilical cord blood (69 pmol/g globin).
Discussion:
AAV adduct levels in non-smoking mothers and neonates showed a good correlation (r=0.859). The concentration of AA adducts in the blood of neonates is approximately 50% of the adduct level found in the blood of the mother. In view of the shorter life span of neonatal erythrocytes and the lower body weight of newborn infants, the relative internal dose of AA in neonates (in microgrammes per kilogramme body weight) must be assumed to be at least equal to that of the mother. Because of the high cell-replication rates during foetal development, trans-placental exposure of neonates to AA might raise concerns. Neonates of smoking mothers take up much higher doses of AA than those of non-smoking mothers.
