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Abstract
Objective
To evaluate the association between prenatal exposure to molybdenum (Mo) and infant neurodevelopment during the first 30 months of life.
Methods
We selected a random sample of 147 children who participated in a prospective cohort study in four municipalities in the State of Morelos, Mexico. The children were the products of uncomplicated pregnancies with no perinatal asphyxia, with a weight of ≥2 kg at birth, and whose mothers had no history of chronic illnesses. These women were monitored before, during, and after the pregnancy. For each of these children a maternal urine sample was available for at least one trimester of pregnancy, and urine Mo levels were determined by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry. Neurodevelopment was evaluated using the psychomotor (PDI) and mental development indices (MDI) of the Bayley scale. Association between prenatal exposure to Mo and infant neurodevelopment was estimated using generalized mixed effect models.
Results
The average urinary concentrations of Mo adjusted for creatinine varied between 45.6 and 54.0 µg/g of creatinine at first and third trimester, respectively. For each doubling increase of Mo (μg/g creatinine) during the third trimester of pregnancy, we observed a significant reduction on PDI (β = −0.57 points; P = 0.03), and no effect on MDI (β = 0.07 points; P = 0.66).
Discussion
As this is the first study that suggests a potential negative association between prenatal Mo exposure and infant neurodevelopment, these results require further confirmation.
Acknowledgments
This study was funded by grants (41708, 31034-M, 13915) from the National Council of Science and Technology of Mexico (CONACyT) and by the South-South Collaboration Program pertaining to the Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health (D43TW00640) of Mount Sinai School of Medicine/Queens College International Training and Research in Environmental and Occupational Health Program. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Fogarty International Center or the National Institutes of Health. The authors are grateful to Ms Patricia Castro for her assistance in contacting the families and administering the questionnaires; also to Dr Marcia Galván Portillo and MSc Wendy Elena Becerra Romero, from the National Institute of Public Health, for their support in dietary information.