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Trace elements and APOE polymorphisms in pregnant women and their new-borns

Trdin, Ajda ; Snoj Tratnik, Janja ; Stajnko, Anja LU ; Marc, Janja ; Mazej, Darja ; Sešek Briški, Alenka ; Kastelec, Damijana ; Prpić, Igor ; Petrović, Oleg and Špirić, Zdravko , et al. (2020) In Environment International 143.
Abstract

We investigated the relationship between lipid binding glycoprotein apolipoprotein E (apoE; gene APOE) polymorphisms (ε4 allele carriers versus no carriers = ε4+/ε4−) and trace elements (TEs) (e.g., (methyl)mercury, arsenic, lead, cadmium, selenium, manganese, copper, and zinc) in mothers (N = 223) and their new-borns (N = 213) exposed to potentially toxic metal(loid)s from seafood consumption. The apoE isoform encoded by the ε4 allele is believed to have beneficial effects in early life but represents a risk factor for age-associated diseases. Under certain conditions ε4 carriers are more susceptible to oxidative stress and metal(loid) toxicity. DNA from Croatian pregnant women (N = 223, third trimester) and their new-borns (N = 176),... (More)

We investigated the relationship between lipid binding glycoprotein apolipoprotein E (apoE; gene APOE) polymorphisms (ε4 allele carriers versus no carriers = ε4+/ε4−) and trace elements (TEs) (e.g., (methyl)mercury, arsenic, lead, cadmium, selenium, manganese, copper, and zinc) in mothers (N = 223) and their new-borns (N = 213) exposed to potentially toxic metal(loid)s from seafood consumption. The apoE isoform encoded by the ε4 allele is believed to have beneficial effects in early life but represents a risk factor for age-associated diseases. Under certain conditions ε4 carriers are more susceptible to oxidative stress and metal(loid) toxicity. DNA from Croatian pregnant women (N = 223, third trimester) and their new-borns (N = 176), was genotyped for APOE by TaqMan® SNP assay – rs429358 and rs7412. Seafood intake data and TE levels in maternal urine, milk, hair, peripheral venous blood, mixed cord blood, and new-borns’ urine were available from previous studies. We compared TEs between ε4+ and ε4− carriers using Mann-Whitney U tests and applied multiple linear regression models to analyse the TE's dependence on the presence of allele ε4 (genotypes ε3/ε4, ε4/ε4) in combination with other explanatory variables. We identified 17% (n = 37) and 20% (n = 35) ε4 allele carriers in mothers and new-borns, respectively. The Mann-Whitney U test showed that mothers with the ε4 allele had significantly higher mean levels of (methyl)mercury in peripheral venous blood, cord blood, and hair; arsenic in urine and cord blood; and selenium in peripheral venous blood and plasma. However, taking confounders into account, only the maternal plasma selenium remained statistically significant in the linear regression models (ε4 carriers vs non-carriers: 62.6 vs 54.9 ng/mL, p < 0.001). Literature suggestions of possible ε4 allele impact on Hg levels were not observed, while superior selenium status observed in healthy pregnant women carrying allele ε4 could be linked to the proposed APOE ε4 beneficial effects early in life.

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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Apolipoprotein E polymorphism, Mercury, Pregnancy, Selenium, Trace elements, ε4 allele
in
Environment International
volume
143
article number
105626
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • scopus:85087212027
  • pmid:32622117
ISSN
0160-4120
DOI
10.1016/j.envint.2020.105626
language
English
LU publication?
no
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © 2020 The Authors
id
49074a55-2a20-4331-9419-9e0202f9a71e
date added to LUP
2025-02-21 21:49:10
date last changed
2025-04-04 14:00:04
@article{49074a55-2a20-4331-9419-9e0202f9a71e,
  abstract     = {{<p>We investigated the relationship between lipid binding glycoprotein apolipoprotein E (apoE; gene APOE) polymorphisms (ε4 allele carriers versus no carriers = ε4+/ε4−) and trace elements (TEs) (e.g., (methyl)mercury, arsenic, lead, cadmium, selenium, manganese, copper, and zinc) in mothers (N = 223) and their new-borns (N = 213) exposed to potentially toxic metal(loid)s from seafood consumption. The apoE isoform encoded by the ε4 allele is believed to have beneficial effects in early life but represents a risk factor for age-associated diseases. Under certain conditions ε4 carriers are more susceptible to oxidative stress and metal(loid) toxicity. DNA from Croatian pregnant women (N = 223, third trimester) and their new-borns (N = 176), was genotyped for APOE by TaqMan® SNP assay – rs429358 and rs7412. Seafood intake data and TE levels in maternal urine, milk, hair, peripheral venous blood, mixed cord blood, and new-borns’ urine were available from previous studies. We compared TEs between ε4+ and ε4− carriers using Mann-Whitney U tests and applied multiple linear regression models to analyse the TE's dependence on the presence of allele ε4 (genotypes ε3/ε4, ε4/ε4) in combination with other explanatory variables. We identified 17% (n = 37) and 20% (n = 35) ε4 allele carriers in mothers and new-borns, respectively. The Mann-Whitney U test showed that mothers with the ε4 allele had significantly higher mean levels of (methyl)mercury in peripheral venous blood, cord blood, and hair; arsenic in urine and cord blood; and selenium in peripheral venous blood and plasma. However, taking confounders into account, only the maternal plasma selenium remained statistically significant in the linear regression models (ε4 carriers vs non-carriers: 62.6 vs 54.9 ng/mL, p &lt; 0.001). Literature suggestions of possible ε4 allele impact on Hg levels were not observed, while superior selenium status observed in healthy pregnant women carrying allele ε4 could be linked to the proposed APOE ε4 beneficial effects early in life.</p>}},
  author       = {{Trdin, Ajda and Snoj Tratnik, Janja and Stajnko, Anja and Marc, Janja and Mazej, Darja and Sešek Briški, Alenka and Kastelec, Damijana and Prpić, Igor and Petrović, Oleg and Špirić, Zdravko and Horvat, Milena and Falnoga, Ingrid}},
  issn         = {{0160-4120}},
  keywords     = {{Apolipoprotein E polymorphism; Mercury; Pregnancy; Selenium; Trace elements; ε4 allele}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Environment International}},
  title        = {{Trace elements and APOE polymorphisms in pregnant women and their new-borns}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2020.105626}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.envint.2020.105626}},
  volume       = {{143}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}