To investigate the impact of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) exposure during pregnancy on neonatal sex hormone levels and birth physique, this study recruited 271 mother-infant pairs from Guangzhou and collected meconium samples within 24hours postpartum. The levels of ten OCPs and seven sex hormones in meconium were analyzed. The generalized linear model (GLM) was employed to explore the association between OCP exposure and birth physique scores. Additionally, the mediation effect model was utilized to assess the mediating role of sex hormones in the relationship between OCP exposure and birth physique scores. The results indicated that the predominant OCPs in neonatal meconium was p,p'-DDE, with concentration range of not detected (nd) to 0.25nmol/g (median 0.05nmol/g). The median levels of progesterone (P4), androstenedione (AED), testosterone (T), estrone (E1), estradiol (E2), and estriol (E3) in meconium were 1.80, 0.24, 0.13, 0.15, 0.38, and 8.24nmol/g respectively. For each unit increase in p,p'-DDE exposure level, AED, T, and E3 in meconium increased by 1.82 (95% CI: 0.34, 3.29), 1.31 (95% CI: 0.03, 2.60), and 211(95% CI: 120, 302), respectively. In male newborns, for each unit increase in p,p'-DDE concentration was associated with an increase of 9.12 (95% CI: 3.11, 14.9) in E3leevels. Conversely, in female newborns, for each unit increase in Σ10OCPs concentration resulted in a decrease of 11.8 (95% CI: - 22.8, - 0.84) in the E2/T ratio. Exposure to p,p' - DDE may influence the birth length-Zscore (BLZ) in male neonates through the regulation of E3, with an indirect effect of 0.73 and a mediation effect percentage of 25.3%. Exposure to Σ10OCPs may impact head circumference-Zscore (HCZ) in female neonates via regulating E2/T ratio, with an indirect effect of - 0.18 and a mediation effect percentage of 19.4%. Exposure to OCPs during pregnancy may affect the changes in birth physique scores of neonates by regulating their sex hormone levels.
| 科 Family | 属数 Number of genus | 种数 Number of species | 占总种数比例 Percentage of total species (%) | 属 Genus | 种数 Number of species | 占总种数比例 Percentage of total species (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 鹅膏菌科Amanitaceae | 2 | 11 | 5.26 | 鹅膏菌属 Amanita | 10 | 4.78 |
| 小菇科 Mycenaceae | 2 | 12 | 5.74 | 丝盖伞属 Inocybe | 5 | 2.39 |
| 多孔菌科 Polyporaceae | 8 | 14 | 6.70 | 蜡蘑属 Laccaria | 5 | 2.39 |
| 红菇科 Russulaceae | 3 | 23 | 11.00 | 小皮伞属 Marasmius | 6 | 2.87 |
| 小菇属 Mycena | 11 | 5.26 | ||||
| 光柄菇属 Pluteus | 5 | 2.39 | ||||
| 红菇属 Russula | 17 | 8.13 | ||||
| 栓菌属 Trametes | 5 | 2.39 |