Grant: Project Grant

The healthy development of children is very sensitive to exposure to environmental chemicals during pregnancy. Prenatal exposure to chemicals in plastics, specifically phthalates, is substantial due to their widespread use in food packaging, household cleaners, cosmetics and personal care products. Phthalates can cross the placenta and affect the activity of genes critical for brain development. This in turn could influence the development of children's thinking and reasoning abilities and behaviour. Prenatal exposure to phthalates has been associated with adverse effects on children's development, including lower levels of intelligence, poorer motor and language skills and a higher risk for autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The effect of phthalates on genes is poorly understood and may be different for girls and boys. This could explain the greater proportion of boys who are diagnosed with developmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Our team is comprised of researchers with expertise in child development, epigenetics, environmental toxicology and public health. We will use already collected data on mother's prenatal exposure to phthalate chemicals and children's cognitive, motor and behavioural outcomes at 2, 3-4 and 5-9 years of age. This data comes from two studies that recruited women during pregnancy, one in Canada and the other in Australia. These studies have biobanked DNA samples that will be used to identify genes that change due to phthalate exposure. We will investigate the relationship between these genes and intelligence, language and motor skills, and behaviour in girls and boys. Our results could be used to update recommendations on exposure to chemicals in plastics during pregnancy. They could also be used to design interventions to prevent or reverse the potential negative effects of exposure to these plastic chemicals on children's brains and behaviour.