Concentrations of tetanus and diphtheria antibodies in vaccinated Greenlandic children aged 7-12 years exposed to marine pollutants, a cross sectional study

Previous studies have shown immunotoxic effects of environmental chemicals, and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recently identified a need for more studies on PFAS immunotoxicity in different populations. In the Arctic, populations are exposed to several environmental chemicals through mar...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental Research
Main Authors: Timmermann, Clara Amalie Gade, Pedersen, Henning Sloth, Weihe, Pál, Bjerregaard, Peter, Nielsen, Flemming, Heilmann, Carsten, Grandjean, Philippe
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2022
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Online Access:https://portal.findresearcher.sdu.dk/da/publications/69f5a6a7-4c70-476d-a174-4629817be98a
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2021.111712
https://findresearcher.sdu.dk/ws/files/191308015/1_s2.0_S0013935121010069_main.pdf
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Summary:Previous studies have shown immunotoxic effects of environmental chemicals, and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recently identified a need for more studies on PFAS immunotoxicity in different populations. In the Arctic, populations are exposed to several environmental chemicals through marine diet, and the objective of this study was therefore to examine the association between Greenlandic children's exposure to major environmental chemicals and their concentrations of diphtheria and tetanus vaccine antibodies after vaccination. The study includes cross-sectional data from Greenlandic children aged 7-12 years examined during 2012-2015. A total of 338 children were eligible for the study, and 175 of these had available vaccination records. A parent or guardian participated in a structured interview, and a blood sample from the child was analyzed for specific antibodies against diphtheria and tetanus as well as perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and total mercury. Furthermore, for a subgroup, blood samples from pregnancy were available and analyzed for environmental contaminants. The associations between the environmental exposures and antibody concentrations and odds of having antibody concentrations below the protective level were examined in linear and logistic regression models. In crude analyses, elevated concentrations of some of the contaminants were associated with higher concentrations of diphtheria and tetanus antibodies, but the associations were reversed when adjusting for area of residence, and duration of being breastfed and including children with a known vaccination date only. Each 1 ng/mL increase in serum concentrations of perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) was associated with decreases of 78 % (95 % CI: 25-94 %) and 9 % (95 % CI: 2-16 %), respectively, in diphtheria antibody concentrations. Exposure to PCBs and all PFASs was associated with markedly increased odds of having diphtheria antibody concentrations ...