The Effects of Early Life Environmental Toxicants on Neurodevelopment From Early to Middle Childhood

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Abstract

The deleterious effects of toxicant exposure on child neural and behavioral development are a major public health concern. Research suggests that toxicant exposures in early life (pregnancy to 5 years old) are particularly detrimental given its neurotoxic effects on the developing brain. The focus of the papers in this symposium examines the effects of different types of environmental exposures on children’s neurodevelopmental behaviors (i.e., neurodevelopmental delay, behavioral problems) from early to middle childhood within multiple samples across the United States. Paper 1 found that early life arsenic exposure was associated with increased autism-related social behaviors at 3 years old, and the microbiome moderated this effect. Paper 2 examined metal mixtures and found that prenatal exposure to lead was associated with language delay at 4-5 years old, but exposure to other metals was positively associated with language ability in early childhood. Paper 3 reported that prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) interacts with maternal hardship to exacerbate detrimental effects on children’s reading ability at 6 years old. Paper 4 found associations between prenatal exposure to phthalate mixtures and child externalizing behaviors at age 7-9, particularly for girls. Taken together, these studies illustrate the importance of understanding the severity of the effects of toxicant exposures to inform early interventions to address neurodevelopmental delays and problem behaviors.

Sub Unit

• Biological Processes: Psychophysiology

Chair

• Amanda Ramos, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Individual Presentations

• Modification of Associations Between Arsenic Exposure and Social Behavioral Development by the Infant Microbiome - Presenting Author: Hannah Laue, Dartmouth College; Yuka Moroishi, Dartmouth; Juliette C Madan, Dartmouth; Margaret R. Karagas, Dartmouth College Geisel School of Medicine,

• Method-Informed Mixture Assessment of Metals Exposure and Socioeconomic Contributions to Neurodevelopmental Delay - Presenting Author: Johnnye Lewis; Li Luo, University of New Mexico; Debra MacKenzie

• Effects of Prenatal Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Childhood Material Hardship on Reading Achievement in Childhood - Presenting Author: Paige Greenwood, SRCD/AAAS Fellow; Amy Margolis, Columbia University; Jacob W Cohen; Ran Liu, Columbia University; Lori Hoepner, SUNY Downstate Health Science University; Virginia Rauh, Columbia University Medical Center; Julie Herbstman, Columbia University; David Pagliaccio, New York State Psychiatric Institute

• Effects of Prenatal Phthalate Mixtures on Childrens’ Externalizing Behaviors in Middle Childhood - Presenting Author: Amanda Ramos, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Amy Herring, Duke University; Stephanie M. Engel, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill