Grant: Operating Grant

Evidence has recently emerged that increasing maternal exposure to the widespread environmental contaminants, bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates, is negatively associated with a broad range of neurodevelopmental and behavioural outcomes in young children. The effects in children beyond the age of 3 have not been well studied, but animal models suggest that these deficits may be permanent. Maternal and infant nutrient status is also an important determinant of neurodevelopment, but this data has not been available in any previous human study of BPA or phthalate exposure. We will make use of an established prospective pregnancy cohort (the Alberta Pregnancy Outcomes and Nutrition study; APrON) to advance the current state-of-knowledge by examining the associations between perinatal BPA and phthalate exposure on neurodevelopment while considering the likely interaction with key nutrients in mothers and their infants. Specifically, we will analyze the concentrations of BPA and phthalate metabolites in spot maternal urine samples, measure the status of nutrients in perinatal blood samples from the mother and infant, and evaluate child performance at age 3, and again at age 5, on measures of intelligence, motor function, executive function, memory and behaviour. We hypothesize that perinatal exposure to BPA or phthalates will be associated with lower performance, but we will further examine if the effects are attenuated by sufficient nutrient status, or made worse by low nutrient status, methylmercury co-exposure, or lead co-exposure. We will also test if children who were exposed to higher levels of BPA and phthalates in the perinatal period have slower rates of development between ages 3 and 5. We anticipate that the results of this study will contribute to public health protection in Canada and abroad. By identifying nutrients in the perinatal period that can attenuate the subsequent adverse effects in children, risk mitigation strategies may be quickly communicated.