Fetal brain development during pregnancy is susceptible to the effects of neurotoxic substances

The development of the fetal brain during pregnancy is susceptible to the effects of neurotoxic substances, including the metals arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury (Schofield, 2017). The placental barrier is not completely impermeable to the passage of these metals. (Caserta et al, 2013). Several studies report an association between metal exposure during pregnancy and early childhood and impaired cognitive and neuromotor function in children (Lanphear et al., 2005; Bellinger, 2008; Jurewicz, Polanska e Hanke, 2013; Liu et al., 2014).

In Brazil, few studies have investigated metals in maternal blood and umbilical cord blood. (Rosalem, 2004; Amaral et al., 2010; Rudge et al., 2011; de Assis Araujo et al, 2020). In newborns participating in the “Pilot Study of the PIPA Project”, carried out between September 2017 and August 2018, in the city of Rio de Janeiro, southeastern Brazil, Assis Araujo et al. (2020) observed arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury concentrations above the limit of detection (LOD) in all maternal and umbilical cord blood samples (n=117) (de Assis Araujo et al; 2020).

This research will investigate the association between metal concentrations in maternal and umbilical cord blood and the neurological development of children from the “Longitudinal study of the effects of exposure to environmental pollutants on children’s health – Childhood and Environmental Pollutant Project (PIPA)”, which will be carried out at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro Maternity School, in the city of Rio de Janeiro.