Citation
Wylie, Amanda C.; Short, Sarah J.; Fry, Rebecca C.; Mills-Koonce, W. Roger; & Propper, Cathi B. (Online ahead of print). Maternal Prenatal Lead Levels and Neonatal Brain Volumes: Testing Moderations by Maternal Depressive Symptoms and Family Income. Neurotoxicology and Teratology.Abstract
There is considerable evidence that prenatal lead exposure is detrimental to child cognitive and socio-emotional development. Further evidence suggests that the effects of prenatal lead on developmental outcomes may be conditional upon exposure to social stressors, such as maternal depression and low socioeconomic status. However, no studies have examined associations between these co-occurring stressors during pregnancy and neonatal brain volumes. Leveraging a sample of 101 mother-infant dyads followed beginning in mid-pregnancy, we examined the main effects of prenatal urinary lead levels on neonatal lateralized brain volumes (left and right hippocampus, amygdala, cerebellum, frontal lobes) and total gray matter. We additionally tested for moderations between lead and depressive symptoms and between lead and family income relative to the federal poverty level (FPL) on the same neurodevelopmental outcomes. Analyses of main effects indicated that prenatal lead was significantly (ps < 0.05) associated with reduced right and left amygdala volumes (URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ntt.2024.107322Reference Type
Journal ArticleYear Published
Online ahead of printJournal Title
Neurotoxicology and TeratologyAuthor(s)
Wylie, Amanda C.Short, Sarah J.
Fry, Rebecca C.
Mills-Koonce, W. Roger
Propper, Cathi B.