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Study: Grandmaternal Perinatal Serum Polychlorinated Biphenyls and Prevalence of Obesity in Adult Daughters and Granddaughters

This study, co-authored by Dr. Barbara Cohn, director of PHI’s Child Health and Development Studies, examined in utero exposure to polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) and obesity in a three-generation human cohort.

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Grandmothers’ exposure to PCBs may have triggered a multigenerational cycle of obesity in daughters and granddaughters, finds a new study from PHI’s Child Health Development Studies and partners. Co-authored by PHI’s Dr. Barbara Cohn and published in Obesity, this research is the first of its kind to examine the relationship of grandmothers’ perinatal serum PCBs to the risk of developing obesity in two subsequent generations.

The study investigated in utero exposure to polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)—persistent pollutants stored in the fat of animals and humans—and obesity at reproductive age in a three-generation human cohort.

see the full study
Studies have shown that environmental pollutants have contributed to the global rise of obesity, but a lack of multigenerational human studies, beginning in utero, has limited public health response. Using unique data from PHI’s Child Health and Development Studies (CHDS), researchers were able to test two hypotheses to see PCB 138, PCB 153, and PCB 180 effect on adult daughters and granddaughters. 
Findings include:

  • Relative amounts of PCB 138, PCB 153, and PCB 180 in grandmaternal perinatal serum associated prospectively and independently with obesity in daughters and granddaughters of reproductive age.
  • Grandmaternal and maternal obesity also independently associated with obesity in daughters and granddaughters of reproductive age.
  • Susceptibility of the developing fetus to environmental obesogens and a cycle of subsequent maternal obesity could explain and perpetuate increasing prevalence of obesity.

Authors highlight that the discovery of mechanisms and actionable biomarkers of grandmaternal and maternal transmission of obesity risk across generations could lead to prevention opportunities. In particular, women of reproductive age are a critical target population for reducing exposure to suspected obesogens and may benefit from precautionary counseling, even when human data are lacking.

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Learn more: PHI's Child Health and Development Studies

PHI's Child Health and Development Studies (CHDS) investigates how health and disease are passed on between generations—not only genetically, but also through social, personal, and environmental surroundings. Studies spanning over 60 years enable CHDS scientists to study health across generations and seek ways to prevent disease early in life.

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Objective

We investigated in utero exposure to polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) 138, PCB 153, and PCB 180 and obesity at reproductive age in a three-generation human cohort, i.e., the Child Health and Development Studies.

Methods

We used logistic models to estimate associations of PCBs in grandmothers’ (F0) archived perinatal serum with obesity in daughters (F1) at age 30 years and granddaughters (F2) at age 26 years, accounting for family clustering (n = 258 triads). In order to reflect mixture exposures, we modeled PCBs as a ratio of the sum of PCB 138 + PCB 180 to PCB 153 (i.e., “PCB ratio”).

Results

An increase in the PCB ratio from the first to the third tertile corresponded to a 1.73 (95% CI: 1.06–2.82) increase in the odds of F1 obesity and a 1.96 (95% CI: 1.12–3.42) increase in the odds of F2 obesity. The association with F2 obesity differed by F0 BMI (p value for interaction = 0.08). F1 obesity was also associated with F2 obesity (odds ratio, 4.12, 95% CI: 1.95–8.72).

Conclusions

Grandmothers’ perinatal serum levels of mixtures of PCBs may have triggered a multigenerational cycle of obesity in daughters and granddaughters. Resultant obesity among women of reproductive age could further perpetuate obesity in subsequent generations.

Originally published by Obesity Research Journal

Additional Contributors

  • Barbara A. Cohn
  • Piera M. Cirillo
  • Michele A. La Merrill
  • Caitlin C. Murphy
  • Xin Hu
  • Nickilou Y. Krigbaum

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