Maryland Institute of Applied Environmental Health, School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA.
Johns Hopkins University, Department of Environmental Health & Engineering, Department of Epidemiology, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Environ Int. 2019 Jun;127:754-763. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.03.055. Epub 2019 Apr 16.
Organophosphate esters (OPEs) are synthetic chemicals found in many consumer products, including furniture, electronics, processed foods, and building materials. Emerging in vitro and in vivo studies suggest that OPEs are metabolism disrupting compounds; however, epidemiologic studies investigating their associations with adiposity markers are sparse.
We examined cross-sectional associations between OPE biomarkers and adiposity measures among U.S. children and adults participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES: 2013-2014).
Concentrations of five OPE metabolites were quantified in urine: diphenyl phosphate (DPHP), bis(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (BDCPP), bis(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (BCEP), dibutyl phosphate (DBUP), and bis(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (BCPP). We conducted covariate-adjusted logistic and linear regressions to examine associations between log-transformed and dichotomized OPE metabolite concentrations and obesity, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference (WC), separately among 784 children (6-19 years) and 1672 adults (≥20 years). We also assessed heterogeneity of associations by sex.
DBUP concentrations were inversely associated with the prevalence odds of being obese vs. normal weight in children (adjusted Prevalence Odds Ratio, aPOR: 0.82, 95% Confidence Interval, 95% CI: 0.70, 0.95) and adults (aPOR: 0.83, 95% CI: 0.72, 0.96). DBUP was also significantly associated with lower BMI z-scores (β:-0.08, 95% CI:-0.17, 0.01) and WC (β:-0.71, 95% CI: -1.49, 0.07) in children. BCEP concentrations were associated with increased prevalence odds of being overweight vs. normal weight (aPOR: 1.15, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.32) among children; similar, albeit not statistically significant, relationships were observed with other child adiposity outcomes. Among adults, detectable BCPP concentrations were associated with increased prevalence odds of being obese vs. normal weight (aPOR: 1.70, 95% CI: 1.21, 2.38) and having a high vs. normal WC (aPOR: 1.51, 95% CI: 1.11, 2.07) as well as higher BMI (β: 1.31, 95% CI: 0.30, 2.33). Other OPE metabolites were not consistently associated with adiposity measures among adults. Although associations of BCPP exposure with adiposity outcomes were generally inverse among boys, but not girls, we did not observe consistent evidence of sexually-dimorphic associations for other OPE metabolites.
Exposure to select OPEs may be differentially associated with body size among children and adults. Given the cross-sectional design of the present study, future prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings.
有机磷酸酯（OPE）是许多消费品中发现的合成化学品，包括家具、电子产品、加工食品和建筑材料。新兴的体外和体内研究表明，OPE 是代谢扰乱化合物；然而，关于它们与肥胖标志物之间关联的流行病学研究很少。
我们研究了美国儿童和成年人中 OPE 生物标志物与肥胖指标之间的横断面关联，他们参加了国家健康和营养检查调查（NHANES：2013-2014 年）。
尿液中五种 OPE 代谢物的浓度进行了定量：磷酸二苯酯（DPHP）、双（1,3-二氯-2-丙基）磷酸酯（BDCPP）、双（2-氯乙基）磷酸酯（BCEP）、二丁基磷酸酯（DBUP）和双（1-氯-2-丙基）磷酸酯（BCPP）。我们进行了协变量调整的逻辑和线性回归，以分别在 784 名儿童（6-19 岁）和 1672 名成年人（≥20 岁）中，研究 log 转换和二分类 OPE 代谢物浓度与肥胖、体重指数（BMI）和腰围（WC）之间的关联。我们还通过性别评估了关联的异质性。
DBUP 浓度与儿童肥胖与正常体重的患病率比值呈负相关（调整后的患病率比值，aPOR：0.82，95%置信区间，95%CI：0.70，0.95）和成年人（aPOR：0.83，95%CI：0.72，0.96）。DBUP 还与儿童 BMI z 分数（β：-0.08，95%CI：-0.17，0.01）和 WC（β：-0.71，95%CI：-1.49，0.07）呈显著负相关。BCEP 浓度与儿童超重与正常体重的患病率比值增加有关（aPOR：1.15，95%CI：1.01，1.32）；类似的，尽管没有统计学意义，但与其他儿童肥胖结果也存在类似的关系。在成年人中，可检测到的 BCPP 浓度与肥胖与正常体重的患病率比值增加有关（aPOR：1.70，95%CI：1.21，2.38）和高与正常 WC 的患病率比值有关（aPOR：1.51，95%CI：1.11，2.07）以及更高的 BMI（β：1.31，95%CI：0.30，2.33）。其他 OPE 代谢物与成年人的肥胖指标之间没有一致的关联。尽管 BCPP 暴露与肥胖结果之间的关联在男孩中通常是相反的，但在女孩中并非如此，我们没有观察到其他 OPE 代谢物的性别差异关联的一致证据。
选择的 OPE 暴露可能会在儿童和成年人中对体型产生不同的影响。鉴于本研究的横断面设计，需要进行未来的前瞻性研究来证实这些发现。
