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Updated: Apr 29, 2026
Long-term Behavioral and Reproductive Consequences of Embryonic Exposure to Low-dose Toxicants
Published on: March 6, 2018
DDE and PCB serum concentration in maternal blood and their adult female offspring
Wei-Wen Hsu1, Janet Rose Osuch2, David Todem3
1Department of Statistics, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, USA.
Insights
Maternal Dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethylene (DDE) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) levels predict offspring concentrations decades later. This highlights the lasting impact of prenatal exposure to these persistent pollutants.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Toxicology
- Reproductive Health
Background:
- Dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethylene (DDE) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent organic pollutants.
- Maternal transfer to offspring occurs via placenta and breastfeeding.
- Predictive relationship between maternal and adult offspring levels remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between maternal DDE and PCB blood levels and concentrations in their adult female offspring.
- Utilize data from the Michigan Fisheaters' Cohort study.
Main Methods:
- Measured DDE and PCB concentrations in 132 adult daughters and 84 mothers.
- Estimated prenatal exposure using maternal serum levels (1973-1991).
- Employed linear mixed models to regress offspring levels on maternal/prenatal exposures, adjusting for confounders.
Main Results:
- Adult daughter DDE and PCB levels significantly correlated with maternal and estimated prenatal concentrations.
- Maternal exposure levels explained approximately 23% of DDE variance and 43% of PCB variance in daughters.
- Direct maternal transfer was confirmed as significant, even when controlling for shared environmental factors.
Conclusions:
- Intra-uterine DDE and PCB levels accurately predict adult female offspring concentrations up to 40 years later.
- Adverse health effect interpretations must consider the sustained impact of maternal pollutant levels on offspring.
- Highlights the long-term consequences of prenatal exposure to persistent pollutants.
Background:
Dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethylene (DDE) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) can be passed from mother to offspring through placental transfer or breastfeeding. Unknown is whether maternal levels can predict concentrations in adult offspring.
Objectives:
To test the association between maternal blood levels of DDE and PCBs and adult female offspring levels of these compounds using data from the Michigan Fisheaters'Cohort.
Methods:
DDE and PCB concentrations were determined in 132 adult daughters from 84 mothers. Prenatal exposures were estimated based on maternal DDE and PCB serum levels measured between 1973 and 1991. Levels in adult daughters were regressed on maternal and estimated prenatal exposure levels, adjusting for potential confounders using linear mixed models. Confounders included daughter's age, birth order, birth weight, number of pregnancies, the length of time the daughter was breast-fed, the length of time the daughter breast-fed her own children, last year fish-eating status, body mass index, and lipid weight.
Results:
The median age of the participants was 40.4 years (range 18.4-65.4, 5-95 percentiles 22.5-54.6%, respectively). Controlling for confounders and intra-familial associations, DDE and PCB concentrations in adult daughters were significantly positively associated with estimated prenatal levels and with maternal concentrations. The proportion of variance in the adult daughters' organochlorine concentrations explained by the maternal exposure levels is approximately 23% for DDE and 43% for PCBs. The equivalent of a median of 3.67 μg/L prenatal DDE and a median of 2.56 μg/L PCBs were 15.64 and 10.49 years of fish consumption, respectively. When controlling for effects of the shared environment (e.g., fish diet) by using a subsample of paternal levels measured during the same time frames (n=53 and n=37), we determined that the direct maternal transfer remains important.
Conclusions:
Estimated intra-uterine DDE and PCB levels predicted concentrations in adult female offspring 40 years later. Interpretation of adverse health effects from intra-uterine exposures of persistent pollutants may need to consider the sustained impact of maternal DDE and PCB levels found in their offspring.
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