Association of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances with sex hormones in children and adolescents 6-19 Years of age

Yue He; Chengxiang Hu; Yuan Zhang; Xiaoting Fan; Wenhui Gao; Jiaxin Fang; Yanfang Wang; Yan Xu; Lina Jin

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121707

Association of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances with sex hormones in children and adolescents 6-19 Years of age

Environ Pollut. 2023 Jul 15:329:121707. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121707. Epub 2023 Apr 23.

Authors

Yue He¹, Chengxiang Hu², Yuan Zhang³, Xiaoting Fan⁴, Wenhui Gao⁵, Jiaxin Fang⁶, Yanfang Wang⁷, Yan Xu⁸, Lina Jin⁹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: heyue21@mails.jlu.edu.cn.
² Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: hucx22@mails.jlu.edu.cn.
³ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: yuanzhang21@mails.jlu.edu.cn.
⁴ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: fanxt22@mails.jlu.edu.cn.
⁵ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: gaowh20@mails.jlu.edu.cn.
⁶ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: fangjx21@mails.jlu.edu.cn.
⁷ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: yanfang21@mails.jlu.edu.cn.
⁸ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: yanxu21@mails.jlu.edu.cn.
⁹ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, No.1163 Xinmin Street, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, China. Electronic address: jinln@jlu.edu.cn.

PMID: 37098366
DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121707

Abstract

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have raised concerns regarding sex hormones homeostasis disruption in critical windows including childhood and adolescence, but epidemiological evidence is limited. We aimed to explore the associations of total testosterone (TT), estradiol (E₂), and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) in children and adolescents with PFAS in 921 participants 6-19 years of age from NHANES 2013 to 2016. Multiple linear regression models and Bayesian Kernel Machine Regression (BKMR) models stratified by sex-age and sex-puberty-status groups were performed to explore the associations of the associations of individual or mixture of PFAS with sex hormone levels, respectively. Inverse associations were observed between n-PFOA and SHBG in female adolescents when the exposure was modeled as continuous (β = -0.20, 95% CI -0.33, -0.07) or categorized variable (P for trend = 0.005). In children, inverse associations were observed by BKMR in 6-11-year-old girls of high concentration, and in boys of low concentration of the PFAS mixture with TT. A positive association of PFAS mixture with SHBG was observed in boys. PFOS and PFNA were identified as major contributors to the associations in girls and boys, respectively. Although the 95% credible intervals included the null in adolescents, suggestive negative associations of PFAS mixture with TT and SHBG levels in adolescents aged 12-19 years were found by BKMR. Results by sex-puberty status presented a similar pattern, where significantly inverse associations between PFAS mixture and E₂ were observed in the pubertal. Our findings suggested the associations of either individual or mixture PFAS with decreased TT levels, and increased SHBG levels in U.S. children and adolescents, and with decreased E₂ levels in pubertal individuals. The associations were evident in children.

Keywords: Adolescents; BKMR; Children; Perfluoroalkyl substances; Sex hormone.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Alkanesulfonic Acids* / metabolism
Bayes Theorem
Child
Environmental Pollutants* / metabolism
Female
Fluorocarbons* / metabolism
Gonadal Steroid Hormones
Humans
Male
Nutrition Surveys
Testosterone
Young Adult

Substances

Environmental Pollutants
Alkanesulfonic Acids
Fluorocarbons
Gonadal Steroid Hormones
Testosterone