Newborns More Susceptible to Air Pollution

A study has revealed that babies in the womb are more susceptible than their mothers to DNA damage from air pollutants. The results were reported in the June 2004 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives.

The purpose of the study was to measure the effects of prenatal and maternal exposure to combustion-related pollutants in New York City (NY, USA), known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), on DNA damage. PAHs are carcinogenic air pollutants released into the environment as a result of combustion from car, truck, or bus engines; residential heating; power generation; or tobacco smoking. PAHS are able to cross the placental barrier.

The researchers collected blood samples from 265 pairs of mothers and newborns living in New York City and analyzed them for the presence of two biomarkers: carcinogen-DNA adducts and cotinine. In spite of the estimated 10-fold lower dose of the pollutants to the fetus as compared to the mother, the results showed that levels of DNA were comparable in newborns and mothers, while cotinine levels were higher in newborns than mothers.

"These results raise serious concern,” said study leader Dr. Frederica P. Perera, director of the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health, part of the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University (New York, NY, USA), which conducted the study. "Fetal susceptibility to DNA damage from air pollution, including motor vehicle emissions and second-hand smoke, has important implications for cancer risk and developmental problems.”




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