Exposure to brominated trihalomethanes in water during pregnancy and micronuclei frequency in maternal and cord blood lymphocytes

TY - JOUR

T1 - Exposure to brominated trihalomethanes in water during pregnancy and micronuclei frequency in maternal and cord blood lymphocytes

AU - Stayner, Leslie Thomas

AU - Pedersen, Marie

AU - Patelarou, Evridiki

AU - Decordier, Ilse

AU - Vande Loock, Kim

AU - Chatzi, Leda

AU - Espinosa, Ana

AU - Fthenou, Eleni

AU - Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark J

AU - Gracia-Lavedan, Esther

AU - Stephanou, Euripides G

AU - Kirsch-Volders, Micheline

AU - Kogevinas, Manolis

PY - 2014/1

Y1 - 2014/1

N2 - BACKGROUND: Water disinfection by-products have been associated with an increased cancer risk. Micronuclei (MN) frequency in lymphocytes is a marker of genomic damage and can predict adult cancer risk.OBJECTIVE: We evaluated maternal exposure to drinking water brominated trihalomethanes (BTHM) in relation to MN frequency in maternal and cord blood lymphocytes.METHODS: MN frequency was examined in 214 mothers and 223 newborns from the Rhea mother-child cohort in Crete, Greece, in 2007-2008. Residential BTHM water concentrations were estimated during pregnancy using tap water analyses and modeling. Questionnaires on water related habits were used to estimate BTHM exposure from all routes. Associations between BTHM and MN frequency were estimated using negative binomial regression.RESULTS: BTHM concentrations in residential tap water during pregnancy ranged from 0.06 to 7.1 μg/L. MN frequency in maternal binucleated lymphocytes was found to increase with BTHM concentrations in residential water for exposure during the first [rate ratio (RR) for 1 μg/L=1.05; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.11] and second trimesters (RR for 1 μg/L=1.03; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.06), and through all routes of BTHM exposure during the first trimester (RR for 1 μg/week=3.14; 95% CI: 1.16, 8.50).CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that exposure to BTHM may increase the frequency of MN in maternal binucleated lymphocytes.

AB - BACKGROUND: Water disinfection by-products have been associated with an increased cancer risk. Micronuclei (MN) frequency in lymphocytes is a marker of genomic damage and can predict adult cancer risk.OBJECTIVE: We evaluated maternal exposure to drinking water brominated trihalomethanes (BTHM) in relation to MN frequency in maternal and cord blood lymphocytes.METHODS: MN frequency was examined in 214 mothers and 223 newborns from the Rhea mother-child cohort in Crete, Greece, in 2007-2008. Residential BTHM water concentrations were estimated during pregnancy using tap water analyses and modeling. Questionnaires on water related habits were used to estimate BTHM exposure from all routes. Associations between BTHM and MN frequency were estimated using negative binomial regression.RESULTS: BTHM concentrations in residential tap water during pregnancy ranged from 0.06 to 7.1 μg/L. MN frequency in maternal binucleated lymphocytes was found to increase with BTHM concentrations in residential water for exposure during the first [rate ratio (RR) for 1 μg/L=1.05; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.11] and second trimesters (RR for 1 μg/L=1.03; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.06), and through all routes of BTHM exposure during the first trimester (RR for 1 μg/week=3.14; 95% CI: 1.16, 8.50).CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that exposure to BTHM may increase the frequency of MN in maternal binucleated lymphocytes.

KW - Drinking Water

KW - Female

KW - Humans

KW - Infant, Newborn

KW - Lymphocytes

KW - Maternal Exposure

KW - Micronuclei, Chromosome-Defective

KW - Pregnancy

KW - Trihalomethanes

KW - Water Pollutants, Chemical

U2 - 10.1289/ehp.1206434

DO - 10.1289/ehp.1206434

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 24184846

SN - 0091-6765

VL - 122

SP - 100

EP - 106

JO - Environmental Health Perspectives

JF - Environmental Health Perspectives

IS - 1

ER -