Impact of prenatal exposure to mercury and selenium on neurodevelopmental delay in children in the Japan environment and Children's study using the ASQ-3 questionnaire: A prospective birth cohort

Sumitaka Kobayashi; Sachiko Itoh; Chihiro Miyashita; Yu Ait Bamai; Takeshi Yamaguchi; Hideyuki Masuda; Mariko Itoh; Keiko Yamazaki; Naomi Tamura; Sharon J B Hanley; Atsuko Ikeda-Araki; Yasuaki Saijo; Yoshiya Ito; Miyuki Iwai-Shimada; Shin Yamazaki; Michihiro Kamijima; Reiko Kishi; Japan Environment, Children's Study JECS Group

doi:10.1016/j.envint.2022.107448

Impact of prenatal exposure to mercury and selenium on neurodevelopmental delay in children in the Japan environment and Children's study using the ASQ-3 questionnaire: A prospective birth cohort

Environ Int. 2022 Oct:168:107448. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2022.107448. Epub 2022 Aug 4.

Authors

Sumitaka Kobayashi¹, Sachiko Itoh¹, Chihiro Miyashita¹, Yu Ait Bamai¹, Takeshi Yamaguchi¹, Hideyuki Masuda¹, Mariko Itoh¹, Keiko Yamazaki¹, Naomi Tamura¹, Sharon J B Hanley¹, Atsuko Ikeda-Araki², Yasuaki Saijo³, Yoshiya Ito⁴, Miyuki Iwai-Shimada⁵, Shin Yamazaki⁵, Michihiro Kamijima⁶, Reiko Kishi⁷; Japan Environment, Children's Study JECS Group

Affiliations

¹ Center for Environmental and Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, North-12, West-7, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0812, Japan.
² Center for Environmental and Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, North-12, West-7, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0812, Japan; Faculty of Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, North-12, West-5, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0812, Japan.
³ Division of Public Health and Epidemiology, Department of Social Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 1-1-1 Midorigaoka-higashi-2-jo, Asahikawa 078-8510, Japan.
⁴ Faculty of Nursing, Japanese Red Cross Hokkaido College of Nursing, 664-1 Akebono-cho, Kitami 090-0011, Japan.
⁵ Japan Environment and Children's Study Programme Office, National Institute for Environmental Studies, 16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8506, Japan.
⁶ Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, 467-8601 Japan.
⁷ Center for Environmental and Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, North-12, West-7, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0812, Japan. Electronic address: rkishi@med.hokudai.ac.jp.

PMID: 35964534
DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2022.107448

Abstract

Neurodevelopmental delay is associated with neurodevelopmental disorders. Prenatal metal exposure can potentially cause neurodevelopmental delays in children. This study examines whether prenatal exposure to mercury (Hg) and selenium (Se) is associated with the risk of neurodevelopmental delays in children up to 4 years of age. Children enrolled in a prospective birth cohort of the Japan Environment and Children's Study were examined. Hg and Se levels in maternal (n_child = 48,731) and cord (n_child = 3,083) blood were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. Neurodevelopmental delays were assessed in children between the ages of 0.5 to 4 years using the Ages and Stages Questionnaires, Third Edition. The association between exposure and outcomes was examined using the generalized estimation equation models. In maternal blood, compared to participants with Se levels in the first quartile (83.0 to < 156 ng/g), the odds ratio (95 % confidence intervals) for problem-solving ability in children of mothers in the third (168 to < 181 ng/g) and fourth quartiles (181 to 976 ng/g) were 1.08 (1.01 to 1.14) and 1.10 (1.04 to 1.17), respectively. Furthermore, communication, gross and fine motor skills, and problem-solving delays were also observed. However, prenatal Hg levels in maternal and cord blood and Se levels in the latter were not associated with neurodevelopmental delays in children. Thus, the findings of this study suggest an association between Se levels in maternal blood and slightly increased risks of neurodevelopmental delays in children up to the age of 4 years.

Keywords: Ages and Stages Questionnaires; Japan Environment and Children’s Study; Mercury; Neurodevelopment; Pregnancy; Selenium.