Association of in utero exposure to organochlorine pesticides with thyroid hormone levels in cord blood of newborns

Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) had been widely used in agriculture and disease prevention from the 1940s–1960s. Currently, OCPs are raising global concerns due to their associated prevalent contamination and adverse health effects, such as endocrine disruption. Several epidemiological studies have explored the underlying association of OCPs on thyroid hormone (TH) status in adults and newborns, but the results of studies performed on newborns are often inconclusive. This exploratory study was conducted with the purpose of assessing the potential association of the prenatal exposure to OCPs with the concentrations of TH in the cord blood of newborns from China. Cord blood and information on demographic characteristics were collected from 115 newborns between November 2013 and June 2014. The exposure levels of 17 OCPs were measured with a gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, and TH levels including free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) were detected using electrochemiluminescence immunoassay methods. After adjusting for confounding factors (the age of pregnant mothers, education level, monthly household income, parity, and sex of the newborns), we found marginally significant inverse associations of cord plasma measurements of ∑hexachlorcyclohexanes (∑HCHs), 1,1-dichloro-2,2-di(4-chlorophenyl)ethylene (ρ,ρ′-DDE) and methoxychlor with FT4 levels, but not with FT3 and TSH levels. Moreover, higher cord plasma levels of aldrin, dieldrin, ∑dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (∑DDTs), ∑Drins, and ∑OCPs were found to be related to the increase in cord plasma TSH levels after the adjustment for confounders. The results of this exploratory study indicate that in utero exposure to certain OCPs may affect TH status in newborns, and therefore, pose potential effects on early human development. Further research, with larger sample sizes, should be conducted to confirm these findings.