A preliminary study on prenatal polybrominated diphenyl ether serum concentrations and intrinsic functional network organization and executive functioning in childhood

Abstract

Background The prenatal period is a period of vulnerability during which neurotoxic exposures exert persistent changes in brain development and behavior. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), used as flame retardants in commercial products, are known to be developmental neurotoxicants. PBDEs were phased out of use in the United States a decade ago, but exposure remains widespread due to their release from existing products and biopersistence. Despite consistent animal and epidemiological evidence of developmental neurotoxicity, the neural substrates linking prenatal PBDE serum concentrations to impaired neurodevelopment are poorly understood. Methods In the present study, we used resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine associations between prenatal PBDE concentrations measured in maternal serum and intrinsic functional network organization (i.e., global and local efficiency; estimated using a graph‐theoretical approach) in 5‐year‐old children (n = 34). We explored whether PBDE serum concentrations were associated with executive functioning (EF) assessed using a parent‐report questionnaire (BRIEF‐P) (n = 106) and whether changes in intrinsic functional network organization linked the association between prenatal PBDE serum concentrations and EF problems. Results Children with higher prenatal PBDE serum concentrations showed: (a) increased global efficiency of brain areas involved in visual attention (e.g., inferior occipital gyrus) (β's = .01, FDR‐corrected p's ≤ .05); (b) more reported EF problems (β's = .001, FDR‐corrected p's ≤ .05). Higher global efficiency of brain areas involved in visual attention was associated with more EF problems (β's = .01, FDR‐corrected p's < .05). Conclusions Intrinsic functional network organization of visual attention brain areas linked prenatal PBDE concentrations to EF problems in childhood. Visual attention may contribute to the development of higher‐order cognitive functions, such as EF, which could be explored in future studies.

Pediatric Exposures to Neurotoxicants: A Review of Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy Findings

“…Children with higher prenatal PBDE serum concentrations showed more parent-reported executive function problems, including poor inhibition and shifting. Children who showed increased global efficiency of brain areas involved in visual attention, specifically the lingual gyrus and inferior occipital gyrus presented with more parent-reported executive function problems [42].…”

“…de Water and colleagues used rs-fMRI to examine associations between prenatal polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) concentrations measured in maternal serum and intrinsic functional network organization in 5-year-old children (n = 34), adjusting for sex, maternal education, and home environment [42]. Children with higher prenatal PBDE serum concentrations showed increased global efficiency of brain areas involved in memory (hippocampus) and visual attention (lingual gyrus, inferior and superior occipital gyrus, posterior inferior and middle temporal gyrus), and decreased global efficiency of brain areas involved in sensorimotor functions (precentral gyrus) and visual (middle occipital gyrus), and auditory processing (superior temporal gyrus).…”

Triiodothyronine or Antioxidants Block the Inhibitory Effects of BDE-47 and BDE-49 on Axonal Growth in Rat Hippocampal Neuron-Glia Co-Cultures

“…The brominated flame retardants, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), are considered to be likely environmental risk factors for neurodevelopmental disorders [1][2][3][4]. Epidemiologic studies have identified a negative association between developmental exposure to PBDEs and executive function, motor behavior, and attention in infants and children [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]. These findings are of significant public health concern given the documented widespread human exposure to PBDEs with significantly higher body burdens in infants and toddlers relative to adults [13,14].…”

“…It has been hypothesized that PBDE developmental neurotoxicity reflects altered patterns of neuronal connectivity [12,15,16]. A critical determinant of the patterns of connections formed between neurons during development is axonal morphology.…”

The personality dispositions and resting-state neural correlates associated with aggressive children

“…Thus, task-free designs may be advantageous for examining the brain bases of aggression ( Telzer et al. , 2018 ; Water et al. , 2019 ).…”