Perfluoroalkyl substances and thyroid hormones in cord blood

•Serum PFASs concentrations were associated with thyroid hormone levels in cord blood.•Thyroid hormones TSH and T4 were significantly associated with PFOS concentrations.•Associations between thyroid hormones and PFASs concentrations were observed in boys.

BackgroundPerfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are pollutants that tend to accumulate in the environment and organisms. The animal and human studies to date have focused on thyroid function, but the results are inconsistent.MethodsA sample of 118 mother-infant pairs was obtained from the Taiwan Birth Panel Study (TBPS). Cord blood PFASs levels were evaluated using the Waters ACQUITY UPLC system coupled with a Waters Quattro Premier XE triple quadrupole mass spectrometer, and cord blood thyroid hormones were assessed using a Roche Analytics E170 modular analyser (Roche Diagnostics, Mannheim, Germany). PFASs concentrations were analysed in the final models to examine the associations between cord blood PFASs levels and thyroid hormone concentrations.ResultsThe cord blood perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) concentration was negatively associated with the cord blood thyroxine (T4) concentration [per ln unit: adjusted β (95% confidence interval, CI) = −0.458(−0.916, −0.001)]. Moreover, the level of cord blood thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) was positively associated with the cord blood PFOS concentration [per ln unit: adjusted β (95% confidence interval, CI) = 0.346(0.101, 0.592)]. The sex stratified effects of PFOS on T4 were suggestive of differential effects in high-exposure groups compared with low-exposure group in boys.ConclusionsWe found that cord blood thyroid hormone levels are affected by PFASs, with a negative association between T4 and PFOS and a positive association between TSH and PFOS. The causal associations of thyroid hormones and PFASs require further exploration.

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