Maternal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and epitope level antibody response to vaccines against measles and rubella in children from the Boston birth cohort
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Previous studies suggest that per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) may act as immune suppressants. However, research about the impact of PFAS exposure on antibody responses to the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine is limited and inconsistent. METHODS: This report includes 748 mother-child pairs from the Boston Birth Cohort, with 8 PFAS compounds measured in maternal plasma shortly after delivery. IgG reactivities to measles and rubella were profiled in cord blood and venous blood plasma during early childhood, using Phage ImmunoPrecipitation Sequencing. Linear regression models were applied to assess the relationships between log2-transformed PFAS and IgG reactivities as measured by Viral Aggregate Reactivity score (VARscore, with inverse normal transformation) for measles and rubella. Quantile g-computation was applied to evaluate the PFAS mixture - VARscore associations. RESULTS: The detection rate for 8 PFAS compounds ranged from 90 % to 100 % in maternal plasma. Maternal PFAS burden score (P = 0.01), but not individual PFAS compounds, was associated with lower VARscore for measles in cord blood. In 348 children after receiving the MMR vaccine, three maternal PFAS compounds (Me-PFOSA-AcOH, PFHpS and PFHxS) were significantly associated with lower measles VARscore (P < 0.05). Me-PFOSA-AcOH and PFHxS were significantly associated with higher risk of having low reactivity to measles defined as VARscore < 25th percentile. PFAS mixture analysis revealed a significant inverse association between quantile of the PFAS mixture and measles VARscore (P = 0.025) in children after vaccination, with PFHxS as an important contributor to this association. These inverse associations were more pronounced in Black children (compared to non-Black children) and in preterm children (compared to term children). In comparison, no associations were found for rubella VARscore. CONCLUSIONS: This prospective birth cohort study provides suggestive evidence that maternal PFAS exposure is associated with a reduced immune response to the measles vaccine, especially, among Black or preterm children.
Source: Environment International
Language: English
Subfield: Environmental Chemistry
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $4,750
Funders: March of Dimes Foundation, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Boston University, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Awards: G1639020006, G2382585098, G3046644958, G4645342932, Maternal Exposure to Low Level Mercury, Metabolome, and Child Cardiometabolic Risk in Multi-Ethnic Prospective Birth Cohorts, G501395003, G5802292593, G616695011, G8074824862, G9000010713, G9000222112, G9000302703, Preterm Birth and Child Long-term Cardiometabolic Risk: Integrate Proteomics with Birth Cohort, G975900433
OpenAlex ID: W4409224887