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Infant toenails as a biomarker of in utero arsenic exposure
Matthew A Davis1, Zhigang Li2, Diane Gilbert-Diamond2
11] Children's Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Research Center at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA [2] Institute for Quantitative Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA.
Insights
Infant toenails reliably measure prenatal arsenic exposure, showing a strong link between maternal and infant levels. This finding highlights potential risks from environmental arsenic during pregnancy.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Toxicology
- Pediatric Health
Background:
- Prenatal and early-life exposure to arsenic is linked to adverse health outcomes in children.
- Low to moderate arsenic levels, common globally, may pose risks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess infant arsenic exposure during gestation using infant toenails as a biomarker.
- To evaluate the correlation between maternal and infant arsenic levels.
- To determine the reliability of infant toenails for estimating in utero arsenic exposure.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of infant toenail arsenic concentrations using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in 170 mother-infant pairs from New Hampshire.
- Comparison of infant toenail arsenic with maternal postpartum toenail and urine arsenic concentrations.
- Validation of findings in a separate cohort of 130 mother-infant pairs from Rhode Island.
Main Results:
- Infant toenail arsenic concentration showed a significant correlation with maternal postpartum toenail arsenic concentration (Spearman's rho = 0.34).
- A doubling in maternal toenail arsenic was associated with a 53.8% increase in infant toenail arsenic, compared to a 20.4% increase for maternal urine arsenic.
- A combined maternal arsenic biomarker (toenail and urine) predicted a 67.5% increase in infant toenail arsenic.
Conclusions:
- Infant toenails serve as a reliable biomarker for estimating in utero arsenic exposure.
- Maternal arsenic exposure during gestation, through water and diet, can be effectively monitored via infant toenail analysis.
- This research underscores the importance of assessing prenatal arsenic exposure for child health.
Abstract:
A growing body of evidence suggests that in utero and early-life exposure to arsenic may have detrimental effects on children, even at the low to moderate levels common in the United States and elsewhere. In a sample of 170 mother-infant pairs from New Hampshire, we determined infant exposure to in utero arsenic by evaluating infant toenails as a biomarker using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Infant toenail arsenic concentration correlated with maternal postpartum toenail concentrations (Spearman's correlation coefficient 0.34). In adjusted linear models, a doubling of maternal toenail arsenic concentration was associated with a 53.8% increase in infant toenail arsenic concentration as compared with 20.4% for a doubling of maternal urine arsenic concentration. In a structural equation model, a doubling of the latent variable integrating maternal toenail and urine arsenic concentrations was associated with a 67.5% increase in infant toenail arsenic concentration. A similar correlation between infant and maternal postpartum toenail concentrations was observed in a validation cohort of 130 mother-infant pairs from Rhode Island. In utero exposure to arsenic occurs through maternal water and dietary sources, and infant toenails appear to be a reliable biomarker for estimating arsenic exposure during the critical window of gestation.
