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Abstract: Background: Several studies have reported negative associations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and mercury (Hg) with duration of gestation and fetal growth in fish eating populations. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) from fish, seafood and marine mammal intake has been reported to be positively related with pregnancy duration and fetal growth. So far, it remains unclear, however, if the associations of environmental contaminants (ECs) with growth are direct or mediated through their relation with the duration of gestation and the degree to which DHA intake during pregnancy attenuates the negative association of ECs with fetal growth. Objectives: To investigate direct and indirect associations of in utero exposure to ECs with fetal growth and pregnancy duration while taking into account the possible positive effects of DHA. Methods: Pregnant Inuit women (N =248) from Arctic Quebec were recruited and cord blood samples were analyzed for PCBs, HCB, Hg and DHA. Anthropometric measurements were assessed at birth. Path models were used to evaluate direct and indirect associations. Results: Cord concentrations of PCB 153, HCB and Hg were significantly associated with shorter duration of pregnancy (β varying from −0.17 to −0.20, p <0.05). Path models indicated that the associations of PCBs, HCB and Hg with reduced fetal growth (β varying from −0.09 to −0.13, p <0.05) were mediated through their relations with shorter gestation duration. Cord DHA was indirectly related to greater growth parameters (β varying from 0.17 to 0.20, p <0.05) through its positive association with gestation duration. Conclusion: Prenatal exposure to ECs was associated with reduced gestation duration, which is a recognized determinant of fetal growth. DHA intake during pregnancy appeared to have independent positive association with fetal growth by prolonging gestation. Whether these associations are causal remains to be elucidated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Background: Several prospective studies have revealed that prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other organochlorine compounds (OCs) affect neurodevelopment during infancy. One of the mechanisms by which PCBs might interfere with neurodevelopment is a deficit in thyroid hormone (TH) concentrations. Objectives: We investigated the potential impact of transplacental exposure to PCBs and hexachlorobenzene (HCB) on TH concentrations in neonates from two remote coastal populations exposed to OCs through the consumption of seafood products. Methods: Blood samples were collected at birth from the umbilical cord of neonates from Nunavik (n=410) and the Lower North Shore of the St. Lawrence River (n=260) (Québec, Canada) for thyroid parameters [thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free T4 (fT4), total T3 (tT3), and thyroxine-binding globuline (TBG)] and contaminants analyses. Results: In multivariate models, umbilical cord plasma concentrations of PCB 153, the predominant PCB congener, were not associated with TH and TSH levels in both populations. Prenatal exposure to HCB was positively associated with fT4 levels at birth in both populations (Nunavik, β=0.12, p=0.04; St. Lawrence, β=0.19, p<0.01), whereas TBG concentrations were negatively associated with PCB 153 concentrations (β=−0.13, p=0.05) in the St. Lawrence cohort. Conclusion: OCs levels were not associated to a reduction in THs in neonates from our two populations. Essential nutrients derived from seafood such as iodine may have prevented the negative effects of OCs on the thyroid economy during fetal development. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]