Department of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310058, China; Key Laboratory of Reproductive Genetics (Zhejiang University), Ministry of Education, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310006, China.
Zhejiang Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310052, China.
Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. 2024 Jun 15;278:116427. doi: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2024.116427. Epub 2024 May 10.
Neighborhood walkability may influence maternal-fetal exposure to environmental hazards and maternal-fetal health (e.g., fetal growth restriction, reproductive toxicity). However, few studies have explored the association between neighborhood walkability and hormones in pregnant women.
We included 533 pregnant women from the Hangzhou Birth Cohort Study II (HBCS-II) with testosterone (TTE) and estradiol (E2) measured for analysis. Neighborhood walkability was evaluated by calculating a walkability index based on geo-coded addresses. Placental metals were measured using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). TTE and E2 levels in umbilical cord blood were measured using chemiluminescence microparticle immunoassay (CMIA). Linear regression model was used to estimate the relationship between the walkability index, placental metals, and sex steroid hormones. Effect modification was also assessed to estimate the effect of placental metals on the associations of neighborhood walkability with TTE and E2.
Neighborhood walkability was significantly linked to increased E2 levels (P trend=0.023). Compared with participants at the first quintile (Q1) of walkability index, those at the third quintiles (Q3) had lower chromium (Cr) levels (β = -0.212, 95% CI = -0.421 to -0.003). Arsenic (As), cobalt (Co), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), antimony (Sb), selenium (Se), tin (Sn), and vanadium (V) were linked to decreased TTE levels, and cadmium (Cd) was linked to increased TTE levels. No metal was significantly associated with E2 levels in trend analysis. In the analysis of effect modification, the associations of neighborhood walkability with TTE and E2 were significantly modified by Mn (P = 0.005) and Cu (P = 0.049) respectively.
Neighborhood walkability could be a favorable factor for E2 production during pregnancy, which may be inhibited by maternal exposure to heavy metals.
邻里出行的便利性可能会影响母婴对环境危害和母婴健康（例如胎儿生长受限、生殖毒性）的暴露。然而，很少有研究探讨邻里出行便利性与孕妇体内激素之间的关系。
我们纳入了来自杭州出生队列研究 II（HBCS-II）的 533 名孕妇，对其进行了分析。利用基于地理编码地址的计算方法来评估邻里出行的便利性，并使用电感耦合等离子体质谱法（ICP-MS）来测量胎盘金属。使用化学发光微粒子免疫分析（CMIA）测量脐带血中的睾酮（TTE）和雌二醇（E2）水平。采用线性回归模型来评估步行指数、胎盘金属与性激素之间的关系。同时还进行了效应修饰评估，以估计胎盘金属对邻里出行便利性与 TTE 和 E2 关联的影响。
邻里出行的便利性与 E2 水平的升高呈显著相关（P 趋势=0.023）。与步行指数五分位数（Q1）最低的参与者相比，步行指数五分位数（Q3）最高的参与者的铬（Cr）水平较低（β=-0.212，95%CI=-0.421 至-0.003）。砷（As）、钴（Co）、锰（Mn）、钼（Mo）、镍（Ni）、铅（Pb）、锑（Sb）、硒（Se）、锡（Sn）和钒（V）与 TTE 水平降低有关，而镉（Cd）与 TTE 水平升高有关。在趋势分析中，没有一种金属与 E2 水平呈显著相关。在效应修饰分析中，邻里出行便利性与 TTE 和 E2 的关联分别被 Mn（P=0.005）和 Cu（P=0.049）显著修饰。
邻里出行的便利性可能是妊娠期间 E2 产生的有利因素，而母体暴露于重金属可能会抑制这种因素。
