Antibody response to booster vaccination with tetanus and diphtheria in adults exposed to perfluorinated alkylates

Figures & data

Figure 1. Time-dependent change in serum antibody concentrations against (a) diphtheria and (b) tetanus after vaccination, as modeled by a cubic spline function.

Table 1. Characteristics of healthy study participants (n = 12).

Characteristics	Result
Age in years, median (range)	37.9 (23.2–65.8)
Men, n (%)	6 (50)
PFAS concentration, median (IQR), ng/ml
PFHxS	0.37 (0.27–0.70)
PFHpA	0.12 (0.094–0.14)
PFOS	9.52 (5.38–14.3)
PFOA	1.69 (1.30–2.79)
PFNA	0.66 (0.46–0.80)
PFDA	0.30 (0.20–0.32)
PFUnDA	0.21 (0.18–0.27)
PFDoDA	0.039 (0.035–0.048)
Antibody concentration, median (IQR), IU/ml
Diphtheria, pre-vaccination	1.00 (0.038–2.53)
Tetanus, pre-vaccination	4.03 (1.95–5.63)

Figure 2. Relative change in diphtheria antibody concentration between Days 4 and 10 after booster vaccination, as a function of the PFOS concentration (p = 0.044).

Table 2. Percentage change and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) in exponential change of antibody concentrations between Days 4 and 10 post-vaccination associated with a doubling in serum concentrations of different PFASs.

Antibody/exposure	Change (%)	95% CI	p Value
Diphtheria
PFHxS	−13.31	0.29 to −25.07	0.055
PFHpA	6.52	57.7 to −28.04	0.750
PFOS	−11.90	−0.33 to −21.92	0.044
PFOA	−8.22	6.44 to −20.85	0.250
PFNA	−17.90	−6.39 to −27.99	0.004
PFDA	−18.18	−5.00 to −29.52	0.009
PFUnDA	−12.11	−0.90 to −22.06	0.036
PFDoDA	−15.64	−0.98 to −28.14	0.038
Tetanus
PFHxS	−4.35	6.04 to −13.72	0.390
PFHpA	15.40	49.9 to −11.16	0.280
PFOS	−3.59	5.51 to −11.91	0.420
PFOA	0.23	12.1 to −10.40	0.970
PFNA	−5.96	4.55 to −15.41	0.250
PFDA	−8.31	2.66 to −18.10	0.130
PFUnDA	−7.88	−0.42 to −14.79	0.039
PFDoDA	−10.78	−0.64 to −19.90	0.038

Results are unadjusted, but a model adjusted for sex and age showed similar results.