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INMA: “Is maternal nutrient status influencing the effects of arsenic on the child cognition?”
An INMA study investigated the relation between prenatal exposure to arsenic and cognitive and motor function in preschool children. Researchers also studied whether this relation may differ according to the maternal nutrient status. The inorganic form of arsenic is mainly found in soil and water. In regions with low levels of arsenic in water, as is the case in Spain, the consumption of certain foods, especially rice but also mollusks or legumes, is the main route of exposure to arsenic. The route of exposure to the organic forms is mainly through seafood and fish consumption. After ingestion, inorganic arsenic is transformed through reduction and methylation processes. Several factors seem to affect methylation efficiency, such as the intake of some nutrients and elements (e.g., vitamins B6 and B12, manganese, selenium, and zinc levels), and pregnancy status. Exposure to arsenic during fetal life has been linked to increased risk of neonatal mortality, decreased birth size, increased risk of respiratory symptoms and infections during childhood. A few studies have evaluated the relationship between prenatal exposure to arsenic and neuropsychological function in childhood, and reported heterogeneous results. In the INMA study, a total of 1493 children from the Gipuzkoa and Valencia areas were included. Levels of total arsenic and its metabolites were measured in maternal urine samples collected during pregnancy. Serum manganese and selenium, urinary cadmium, and zinc, and plasma ferritin concentrations were also determined from the first trimester of pregnancy. When children were around 5 years of age, cognitive and motor function were assessed using the McCarthy Scales of Children’s Abilities. Several scales were measured, related to processing of verbal information (verbal score); numerical abilities (quantitative score); perceptual information processing (perceptive-performance score); short-term retention of verbal, visual, or numerical information (memory score); and fine (e.g. drawing) and gross (e.g. balance or accuracy) abilities (motor score). Scales were used to create additional scores of general cognition, executive function score, working memory, and gross motor and fine motor skills. The results suggest that prenatal exposure to arsenic was associated lower general cognition, executive function and working memory at 5 years of age. Additionally, lower methylation efficiency was associated with lower memory scores, and this association was influenced by the maternal concentrations of manganese, zinc, and ferritin. In other words, children whose mothers had lower levels of manganese, zinc, and ferritin during pregnancy obtained worse memory scores with lower methylation efficiency. Reference: Soler-Blasco R, Murcia M, Lozano M, Sarzo B, Esplugues A, Riutort-Mayol G, Vioque J, Lertxundi N, Santa Marina L, Lertxundi A, Irizar A, Braeuer S, Ballester F, Llop S. Prenatal arsenic exposure, arsenic methylation efficiency, and neuropsychological development among preschool children in a Spanish birth cohort. Environ Res. 2022 May 1;207:112208. Link to the scientific article: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34662579/
This is the first study showing that maternal nutrient status may influence the association between prenatal exposure to arsenic and cognitive function in childhood. Authors say that “similar epidemiological studies are necessary in order to improve knowledge about exposure to arsenic, as well as its different species, during critical periods such as prenatal development and its effects on children’s health”, adding that “there is a need for studies that can provide mechanistic data of arsenic neurotoxicity”.
INMA: “A study by Fisabio, UV and UJI links social exclusion and family poverty with worse mental health in childhood”
The FISABIO Foundation has echoed a result of the INMA Project. Link to the news on the FISABIO website: http://fisabio.san.gva.es/web/fisabio/noticia/-/asset_publisher/1vZL/content/salut-mental-infantil Reference: González L, Estarlich M, Murcia M, Barreto-Zarza F, Santa-Marina L, Simó S, Larrañaga MI, Ruiz-Palomino E, Ibarluzea J, Rebagliato M. Poverty, social exclusion, and mental health: the role of the family context in children aged 7-11 years INMA mother-and-child cohort study. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2021 Jul 26. doi: 10.1007/s00787-021-01848-w. Online ahead of print. Link to the scientific article: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34312704/
Defense of the doctoral thesis of Llúcia González Safont
On Friday February the 4th, Llúcia González Safont defended her doctoral thesis “Socioeconomic factors, family environment and cognitive and behavioural development in children aged 5 to 11 years of the INMA Cohort” at the Faculty of Nursing and Chiropody of the University of Valencia. Llúcia is an early childhood education teacher, educational psychologist and master’s degree in psychology and perinatal and child psychopathology. The thesis was supervised by professors Marisa Rebagliato Ruso, from the Universitat Jaume I, and Marisa Estarlich Estarlich and Sandra Simó Teufel, from the Universitat de València, who work in the faculties of Health Sciences, Nursing and Chiropody and Psychology, respectively. The thesis has obtained the qualification of Excellent Cum Laude. The examining board was made up of doctors widely recognised in the field of inequalities in child health. The president of the examining board was Dr. Luis Rajmil, senior researcher at the Agència de Qualitat i Avaluació Sanitàries de Catalunya; the secretary was Dr. Ana Esplugues Cebrián, lecturer at the Faculty of Nursing and Chiropody; and the member was Dr. Amaia Bacigalupe de la Hera, lecturer in Sociology at the University of the Basque Country. This is a thesis by compilation of publications, with a total of three original articles: two of them in Gaceta Sanitaria (Q3) and one in European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (D1) and that included INMA-Gipuzkoa and INMA-Valencia cohorts. The first publication focuses only on the Valencia cohort, and disaggregates the impact of socio-economic factors of the mother and father on the cognitive development of their children at age five, observing that the mother’s educational level and the father’s social class had a significant effect. The second publication studied the associated factors to Risk of Poverty or Social Exclusion, showing differential patterns for each cohort. The third work explored the direct effect of Risk of Poverty or Social Exclusion on mental health problems (internalising and externalising) when children were between 7 and 11 years old, and the mediating or moderating effect of the family environment. CONGRATULATIONS DOCTOR GONZALEZ!!!!!!! 
Biochemical Validation of a Self-Administered Food Frequency Questionnaire to Assess Diet Using Carotenoids and Vitamins E and D in Male Adolescents in SpainBiochemical Validation of a Self-Administered Food Frequency Questionnaire to Assess Diet Using Carotenoids and Vitamins E and D in Male Adolescents in Spain
Notario-Barandiaran L, Navarrete-Muñoz EM, Valera-Gran D, Hernández-Álvarez E, Donoso-Navarro E, González-Palacios S, García-de-la-Hera M, Fernández MF, Freire C, Vioque J. Biochemical Validation of a Self-Administered Food Frequency Questionnaire to Assess Diet Using Carotenoids and Vitamins E and D in Male Adolescents in Spain. Antioxidants (Basel). 2021 May 8;10(5):750. PMID: 34066826
Prenatal Exposure to Cigarette Smoke and Anogenital Distance at 4 Years in the INMA-Asturias Cohort
García-Villarino M, Fernández-Iglesias R, Riaño-Galán I, Rodríguez-Dehli C, Babarro I, Fernández-Somoano A, Tardón A. Prenatal Exposure to Cigarette Smoke and Anogenital Distance at 4 Years in the INMA-Asturias Cohort. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Apr 29;18(9):4774. PMID: 33947132
Vitamin D, pregnancy and caries in children in the INMA-Asturias birth cohort
Suárez-Calleja C, Aza-Morera J, Iglesias-Cabo T, Tardón A. Vitamin D, pregnancy and caries in children in the INMA-Asturias birth cohort. BMC Pediatr. 2021 Sep 3;21(1):380. PMID: 34479530
Neonatal DNA methylation and childhood low prosocial behavior: An epigenome-wide association meta-analysis
Luo M, Meehan AJ, Walton E, Röder S, Herberth G, Zenclussen AC, Cosín-Tomás M, Sunyer J, Mulder RH, Cortes Hidalgo AP, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ, Felix JF, Relton C, Suderman M, Pappa I, Kok R, Tiemeier H, van IJzendoorn MH, Barker ED, Cecil CAM. Neonatal DNA methylation and childhood low prosocial behavior: An epigenome-wide association meta-analysis. Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet. 2021 Jun;186(4):228-241. PMID: 34170065
Genetic association study of childhood aggression across raters, instruments, and age
Ip HF, van der Laan CM, Krapohl EML, Brikell I, Sánchez-Mora C, Nolte IM, St Pourcain B, Bolhuis K, Palviainen T, Zafarmand H, Colodro-Conde L, Gordon S, Zayats T, Aliev F, Jiang C, Wang CA, Saunders G, Karhunen V, Hammerschlag AR, Adkins DE, Border R, Peterson RE, Prinz JA, Thiering E, Seppälä I, Vilor-Tejedor N, Ahluwalia TS, Day FR, Hottenga JJ, Allegrini AG, Rimfeld K, Chen Q, Lu Y, Martin J, Soler Artigas M, Rovira P, Bosch R, Español G, Ramos Quiroga JA, Neumann A, Ensink J, Grasby K, Morosoli JJ, Tong X, Marrington S, Middeldorp C, Scott JG, Vinkhuyzen A, Shabalin AA, Corley R, Evans LM, Sugden K, Alemany S, Sass L, Vinding R, Ruth K, Tyrrell J, Davies GE, Ehli EA, Hagenbeek FA, De Zeeuw E, Van Beijsterveldt TCEM, Larsson H, Snieder H, Verhulst FC, Amin N, Whipp AM, Korhonen T, Vuoksimaa E, Rose RJ, Uitterlinden AG, Heath AC, Madden P, Haavik J, Harris JR, Helgeland Ø, Johansson S, Knudsen GPS, Njolstad PR, Lu Q, Rodriguez A, Henders AK, Mamun A, Najman JM, Brown S, Hopfer C, Krauter K, Reynolds C, Smolen A, Stallings M, Wadsworth S, Wall TL, Silberg JL, Miller A, Keltikangas- Järvinen L, Hakulinen C, Pulkki-Råback L, Havdahl A, Magnus P, Raitakari OT, Perry JRB, Llop S, Lopez-Espinosa MJ, Bønnelykke K, Bisgaard H, Sunyer J, Lehtimäki T, Arseneault L, Standl M, Heinrich J, Boden J, Pearson J, Horwood LJ, Kennedy M, Poulton R, Eaves LJ, Maes HH, Hewitt J, Copeland WE, Costello EJ, Williams GM, Wray N, Järvelin MR, McGue M, Iacono W, Caspi A, Moffitt TE, Whitehouse A, Pennell CE, Klump KL, Burt SA, Dick DM, Reichborn-Kjennerud T, Martin NG, Medland SE, Vrijkotte T, Kaprio J, Tiemeier H, Davey Smith G, Hartman CA, Oldehinkel AJ, Casas M, Ribasés M, Lichtenstein P, Lundström S, Plomin R, Bartels M, Nivard MG, Boomsma DI. Genetic association study of childhood aggression across raters, instruments, and age. Transl Psychiatry. 2021 Jul 30;11(1):413. PMID: 34330890
Prenatal and childhood exposure to air pollution and traffic and the risk of liver injury in European children
Garcia E, Stratakis N, Valvi D, Maitre L, Varo N, Aasvang GM, Andrusaityte S, Basagana X, Casas M, de Castro M, Fossati S, Grazuleviciene R, Heude B, Hoek G, Krog NH, McEachan R, Nieuwenhuijsen M, Roumeliotaki T, Slama R, Urquiza J, Vafeiadi M, Vos MB, Wright J, Conti DV, Berhane K, Vrijheid M, McConnell R, Chatzi L. Prenatal and childhood exposure to air pollution and traffic and the risk of liver injury in European children. Environ Epidemiol. 2021 May 11;5(3):e153. PMID: 34131614
Prenatal and postnatal exposure to PFAS and cardiometabolic factors and inflammation status in children from six European cohorts
Papadopoulou E, Stratakis N, Basagaña X, Brantsæter AL, Casas M, Fossati S, Gražulevičienė R, Småstuen Haug L, Heude B, Maitre L, McEachan RRC, Robinson O, Roumeliotaki T, Sabidó E, Borràs E, Urquiza J, Vafeiadi M, Zhao Y, Slama R, Wright J, Conti DV, Vrijheid M, Chatzi L. Prenatal and postnatal exposure to PFAS and cardiometabolic factors and inflammation status in children from six European cohorts. Environ Int. 2021 Dec;157:106853. PMID: 34500361
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