Relationships between Lipophilic Micronutrient Biomarkers and Serum Persistent Organic Pollutant Concentrations in NHANES 2003 – 2004 Open Access
Taibl, Kaitlin (Spring 2021)
Abstract
Background: Dietary antioxidants pose the potential to mitigate and remediate persistent organic pollutant (POP) bioaccumulation. However, lipophilic micronutrients share many biochemical properties and physiological targets with POPs, which may promote sequestration. Since the relationships between lipophilic micronutrients and POPs may be healthy or unhealthy, a systematic examination is needed.
Objective: To determine if biomarkers for vitamins A, D, and E and carotenoids are associated with common circulating POPs by sex, age, and body mass index (BMI) in a nationally representative sample of the United States population.
Methods: We used data collected from 2,766 participants +12 years old in the 2003 – 2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Multivariate linear regressions stratified by sex estimated the relationships of twenty-two micronutrient biomarker levels against serum concentrations of eight polyhalogenated POPs, including 2,2',4,4'-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (PBDE-47), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). All analytes were natural log-transformed, and potential effect measure modification by age and BMI was assessed. The Benjamini-Hochberg procedure for false discovery rate was used to address testing multiple comparisons.
Results: In this cross-sectional analysis, beta-carotene was directly related to PCB-153 in normal weight (NW) males yet the relationship weakened with aging (both q<0.10). alpha-Tocopherol was inversely related to PBDE-47 among NW males (regression estimate=-1.8, p=0.003, q=0.07) and directly related to PCB-153 among females with obesity, the latter relationship attenuated by age (regression estimate=-0.01, p=0.003, q=0.07). Lycopene was directly related to PFOA among females with obesity (regression estimate=0.4, p=0.01) and inversely related to PCB-153 among NW males (regression estimate=-0.4, p=0.02), the latter relationship strengthened with aging (regression estimate=0.01, p=0.001) (all q<0.10).
Conclusion: Lipophilic micronutrient levels were differentially associated with POP concentrations according to sex, age, and obesity status in humans. Future studies should explore if associations are linked to sex-specific health outcomes, particularly among younger people with greater adiposity who may have limited antioxidant capacity to combat environmental pollutants.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
1. Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1
2. Methods ......................................................................................................................... 3
2.1 Study design and population ........................................................................... 3
2.2 Micronutrient biomarker measurements ......................................................... 4
2.3 Pollutant measurements ................................................................................... 4
2.4 Covariates ........................................................................................................ 5
2.5 Statistical analyses ........................................................................................... 6
3. Results ........................................................................................................................... 8
3.1 Study population demographics and characteristics ....................................... 8
3.2 Micronutrients and POPs ................................................................................. 8
3.2.1 Associations specific to males ...................................................................... 9
3.2.2 Associations specific to females ...................................................... 9
3.2.3 Associations present in both sexes ................................................. 10
4. Discussion ................................................................................................................... 10
4.1 Relationships between vitamin A and POPs ................................................. 10
4.2 Relationships between vitamin D and POPs ................................................. 11
4.3 Relationships between vitamin E and POPs ................................................. 12
4.4 Relationships between carotenoids and POPs ............................................... 13
4.5 Strengths, limitations, and future directions .................................................. 15
5. Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 17
References ....................................................................................................................... 18
Tables .............................................................................................................................. 30
About this Master's Thesis
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Primary PDF
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Relationships between Lipophilic Micronutrient Biomarkers and Serum Persistent Organic Pollutant Concentrations in NHANES 2003 – 2004 () | 2021-04-15 13:01:42 -0400 |
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Supplemental Files
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Kaitlin R Taibl MSPH Thesis Supplemental Tables (Supplemental Tables 1, 2, 3) | 2021-04-15 13:01:49 -0400 |
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