Maternal Metals/Metalloid Blood Levels Are Associated With Lipidomic Profiles Among Pregnant Women in Puerto Rico

Abstract

Background/Aim: The association between heavy metal exposure and adverse birth outcomes is well-established. However, there is a paucity of research identifying biomarker profiles that may improve the early detection of heavy metal-induced adverse birth outcomes. Because lipids are abundant in our body and associated with important signaling pathways, we assessed associations between maternal metals/metalloid blood levels with lipidomic profiles among 83 pregnant women in the Puerto Rico PROTECT birth cohort.Methods: We measured 10 metals/metalloid blood levels during 24–28 weeks of pregnancy. Prenatal plasma lipidomic profiles were identified by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry-based shotgun lipidomics. We derived sums for each lipid class and sums for each lipid sub-class (saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated), which were then regressed on metals/metalloid. False discovery rate (FDR) adjusted p-values (q-values) were used to account for multiple comparisons.Results: A total of 587 unique lipids from 19 lipid classes were profiled. When controlling for multiple comparisons, we observed that maternal exposure to manganese and zinc were negatively associated with plasmenyl-phosphatidylethanolamine (PLPE), particularly those containing polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) chains. In contrast to manganese and zinc, arsenic and mercury were positively associated with PLPE and plasmenyl-phosphatidylcholine (PLPC).Conclusion: Certain metals were significantly associated with lipids that are responsible for the biophysical properties of the cell membrane and antioxidant defense in lipid peroxidation. This study highlighted lipid-metal associations and we anticipate that this study will open up new avenues for developing diagnostic tools.

Rafting on the Evidence for Lipid Raft-like Domains as Hubs Triggering Environmental Toxicants’ Cellular Effects

“…In humans, it is well established that cadmium, lead, and mercury exposures increase serum cholesterol levels [ 12 ]. Correlations were also detected between blood concentrations of arsenic and mercury, and especially manganese and zinc, with alterations in the levels of plasmenyl phospholipids and sphingomyelin [ 160 ]. A metabolomic study of mice exposed to PM also uncovered alterations in the blood levels of glycerol (phospho)lipids, sphingolipids, and lysophospholipids and in pathways involved in the metabolism of fatty acids and sterols, among other critical metabolites and hormones [ 20 ].…”

Misuse of Cardiac Lipid upon Exposure to Toxic Trace Elements—A Focused Review

“…A recent work investigated the associations between blood levels of 10 metals and lipidomic profiles among 83 pregnant women from Puerto Rico [ 28 ]. A total of 587 lipids were measured in the plasma.…”

“…The results showed strong negative associations of manganese and zinc with plasmenyl-phosphatidylethanolamine (PLPE), particularly those containing polyunsaturated fatty acid chains. In contrast, exposure to As and Hg was positively associated with PLPE and plasmenyl-phosphatidylcholine [ 28 ].…”