Publications by authors named "Kaitlin R Taibl"
Background: Longitudinal trends in per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) serum concentrations across pregnancy have not been thoroughly examined, despite evidence linking prenatal PFAS exposures with adverse birth outcomes.
Objectives: We sought to characterize longitudinal PFAS concentrations across pregnancy and to examine the maternal-fetal transfer ratio among participants in a study of risk and protective factors for adverse birth outcomes among African Americans.
Methods: In the Atlanta African American Maternal-Child cohort (2014-2020), we quantified serum concentrations of four PFAS in 376 participants and an additional eight PFAS in a subset of 301 participants during early (8-14 weeks gestation) and late pregnancy (24-30 weeks gestation).
Article Synopsis
- Prenatal exposure to phthalates, found in many consumer products, may negatively impact infant and child development, especially when compounded by maternal depression and anxiety.
- A study involving 81 participants analyzed urine samples from expectant mothers to measure exposure to eight phthalate metabolites during early pregnancy and assessed maternal mental health through validated questionnaires.
- Results indicated no overall link between phthalate levels and infant attention/arousal, but for mothers with high depressive symptoms, specific phthalate metabolites showed a significant increase in newborn arousal, suggesting potential vulnerability in this group.
Background: In mechanistic and preliminary human studies, prenatal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is associated with oxidative stress, a potential contributor to maternal liver disease. Bilirubin is an endogenous antioxidant abundant in the liver that may serve as a physiological modulator of oxidative stress in pregnant people. Hence, our objective was to estimate the association between repeated measures of PFAS and bilirubin during pregnancy.
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- The study investigates the connection between exposure to certain man-made chemicals (PFAS) and hypertensive disorders during pregnancy in African American women, focusing on prenatal exposure to specific PFAS like PFOA and their potential health impacts.
- Data was collected from a cohort of 513 pregnant participants between 2014 and 2020, analyzing serum samples for four types of PFAS and evaluating their association with conditions such as preeclampsia and gestational hypertension.
- Results showed no strong association between PFAS levels and the hypertensive disorders in question, suggesting that individual PFAS or mixtures do not significantly increase the risk of these pregnancy-related complications.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how exposure to phthalates during pregnancy affects systemic inflammation, particularly looking at a group of African American mothers and their inflammation biomarkers.
- Researchers analyzed urinary phthalate levels and various inflammatory markers through biospecimens collected at two points in pregnancy from 126 participants.
- Results indicate that certain phthalate metabolites are linked to increased levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokine IFN-γ, suggesting phthalate exposure may contribute to adverse pregnancy effects through inflammation.
Prenatal exposure to single chemicals belonging to the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) family is associated with biological perturbations in the mother, fetus, and placenta, plus adverse health outcomes. Despite our knowledge that humans are exposed to multiple PFAS, the potential joint effects of PFAS on the metabolome remain largely unknown. Here, we leveraged high-resolution metabolomics to identify metabolites and metabolic pathways perturbed by exposure to a PFAS mixture during pregnancy.
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- The study explored the link between PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) exposure and inflammatory biomarkers during pregnancy in a cohort of African American mothers.
- Results showed that over 90% of participants had detectable levels of PFAS in their serum during early pregnancy, and those levels were associated with higher concentrations of inflammatory cytokines like TNF-α, particularly in late pregnancy (24-30 weeks).
- The findings suggest that increased exposure to PFAS may play a role in adverse pregnancy outcomes by elevating inflammation markers in expectant mothers.
Objectives: High-resolution metabolomics enables global assessment of metabolites and molecular pathways underlying physiologic processes, including substrate utilization during the fasted state. The clinical index for substrate utilization, respiratory exchange ratio (RER), is measured via indirect calorimetry. The aim of this pilot study was to use metabolomics to identify metabolic pathways and plasma metabolites associated with substrate utilization in healthy, fasted adults.
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- Phthalates and BPA, common in consumer products, are linked to endocrine disruption and may negatively affect pregnancy outcomes, particularly among African American women who face higher stress levels.
- The study analyzed urine samples from 247 pregnant African American women to assess the impact of chemical exposure and psychosocial stressors on gestational age and birthweight.
- Results indicated that higher levels of phthalates and BPA were associated with lower birthweight z-scores, with the negative effects intensified when psychosocial stressors were also considered.
Marginalized populations experience disproportionate rates of preterm birth and early term birth. Exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) has been reported to reduce length of gestation, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. In the present study, we characterized the molecular signatures of prenatal PFAS exposure and gestational age at birth outcomes in the newborn dried blood spot metabolome among 267 African American dyads in Atlanta, Georgia between 2016 and 2020.
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- African Americans face higher rates of preterm birth and fetal growth issues compared to other groups, potentially due to increased exposure to harmful environmental chemicals.
- The study focused on analyzing samples from pregnant African American women to understand how a variety of environmental pollutants affect gestational age and birthweight.
- Results indicated that higher exposure to environmental chemicals was linked to lower gestational age and birthweight z-scores, with the strongest effects seen from combined exposures to tobacco, insecticides, PBDEs, and phthalates.
The fate of environmental chemicals in maternal and fetal tissues might be affected by pregnancy-related hemodynamic changes that occur across gestation. Specifically, hemodilution and renal function are hypothesized to confound associations between per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure measures in late pregnancy with gestational length and fetal growth. We sought to analyze two pregnancy-related hemodynamic biomarkers, creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), as confounders of the trimester-specific relationships between maternal serum PFAS concentrations and adverse birth outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Preterm birth is the leading cause of infant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Elevated levels of oxidative stress have been associated with an increased risk of delivering before term. However, most studies testing this hypothesis have been conducted in racially and demographically homogenous study populations, which do not reflect the diversity within the United States.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: African Americans (AAs) experience high rates of adverse pregnancy outcomes relative to Whites. Differential in utero exposure to environmental chemicals and psychosocial stressors may explain some of the observed health disparities, as exposures to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and experiences of discrimination have been linked to adverse birth outcomes. Few studies have examined chemicals and non-chemical stressors together as an exposure mixture, which may better reflect real-life exposure patterns.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Oxidative stress from excess reactive oxygen species (ROS) is a hypothesized contributor to preterm birth. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure is reported to generate ROS in laboratory settings, and is linked to adverse birth outcomes globally. However, to our knowledge, the relationship between PFAS and oxidative stress has not been examined in the context of human pregnancy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBone is a dynamic tissue that is in a constant state of remodeling. Bone turnover markers (BTMs), procollagen type I N-terminal propeptide (P1NP) and C-terminal telopeptides of type I collagen (CTX), provide sensitive measures of bone formation and resorption, respectively. This study used ultra-high-resolution metabolomics (HRM) to determine plasma metabolic pathways and targeted metabolites related to the markers of bone resorption and formation in adults.
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