Notice: Users may be experiencing issues with displaying some pages on stanfordhealthcare.org. We are working closely with our technical teams to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience.
 

Learn about the flu shot, COVID-19 vaccine, and our masking policy »

Stanford Health Care

In utero arsenic exposure and fetal immune repertoire in a US pregnancy cohort CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY Nadeau, K. C., Li, Z., Farzan, S., Koestler, D., Robbins, D., Fei, D. L., Malipatlolla, M., Maecker, H., Enelow, R., Korrick, S., Karagas, M. R. 2014; 155 (2): 188-197

Abstract

Arsenic has wide-ranging effects on human health and there is evidence that it alters the immune response by influencing CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratios, IL-2 cytokine levels, and the expression of immune-response genes. We investigated the impact of in utero environmental arsenic exposure on immune development and function in newborns participating in a pregnancy cohort in New Hampshire, U.S., where arsenic levels have exceeded the current EPA maximum contaminant level of 10 µg/L. Our results showed that maternal urinary arsenic concentrations were inversely related to absolute total CD45RA+ CD4+ cord blood CD69+ T cell counts (N=116, p=0.04) and positively associated with CD45RA+ CD69- CD294+ cell counts (p=0.01). In placental samples (N=70), higher in utero urinary arsenic concentrations were positively associated with the expression of IL1ß (p=0.03). These data provide evidence that relatively low-level arsenic exposure in utero may alter the fetal immune system and lead to immune dysregulation.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.clim.2014.09.004

View details for Web of Science ID 000346114300004

View details for PubMedID 25229165

View details for PubMedCentralID PMC4309995