Prenatal organochlorine pesticide exposure and the disruption of steroids and reproductive hormones in cord blood : The Hokkaido study

Certain organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) are designated as persistent organic pollutants and are regulated in many countries. The effects of OCPs on pediatric endocrinology are a concern; however, only limited data exist from human studies on maternal OCP exposure and its effects on infants' hormone levels. This study was conducted as part of the Hokkaido Study Sapporo Cohort, a prospective birth cohort study in Japan. Participants included 514 women who enrolled at 23-35 weeks of gestation between 2002 and 2005; maternal blood samples were collected in late pregnancy, and 29 OCPs were measured. Reproductive and steroid hormone levels in cord blood were also determined. Characteristics of mothers and their infants were obtained from self-administered questionnaires and medical records. Ultimately, 232 samples with both OCP and hormone data were analyzed. Fifteen of 29 investigated OCPs were detected in over 80% of the samples, with p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene showing the highest concentration (median value: 619 pg/g-wet). The association between OCPs and sex hormone levels varied by sex. Linear regression models after sex stratification showed that chlordanes, cis-hexachlorobenzene, heptachlor epoxide, Mirex, and toxaphenes in maternal blood were inversely associated with testosterone, cortisol, cortisone, sex hormone-binding globin, prolactin, and androstenedione-dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and testosterone-androstenediones ratios among boys. Furthermore, these OCPs were positively correlated with DHEA, follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), and adrenal androgen-glucocorticoid and FSH-inhibin B ratios among boys. In categorical quartile models, testosterone and DHEA were inversely and positively associated with OCPs, respectively. Estradiol-testosterone and adrenal androgen-glucocorticoid ratios tended to increase with increasing OCP concentrations in the higher quartile, while the testosterone-androstenedione ratio tended to decrease. Sex hormone-binding globulin and prolactin showed an inverse association with OCPs. Among girls, the linear regression model showed that only p,p'-dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane was inversely associated with the level of DHEA and the adrenal androgen-glucocorticoid ratio, but was positively associated with cortisone levels. However, no associations were observed using the quartile categorical model. These results suggest that prenatal exposure to OCPs disrupt reproductive hormones of fetuses in utero among boys, even at relatively low levels

Selective Breeding of Resistant Pines against Pine Wood Nematode : Resistance of the Seedlings and the Graftings from Resistant Mother Trees

マツ枯れ激害地域の房総丘陵にある東京大学千葉演習林管内5調査林において，生き残った40～80年生の天然生または人工植栽のアカマツ，クロマツの樹幹にマツノザイセンチュウ2,000頭を接種した。3年間連続接種して枯れなかったアカマツ31本とクロマツ1本を抵抗性母樹に認定した。これらの抵抗性母樹から養苗したつぎ木苗と実生苗にマツノザイセンチュウを接種したところ，生存率は高く，強い抵抗性が再確認された。抵抗性母樹のクローンで造成した採種園から得られた実生苗は，非常に強い抵抗性を示し，マツ枯れ激害地でもほとんど枯れないテーダマツと同程度の抵抗性を示した。数系統のマツノザイセンチュウを接種しても，苗木の生存率は常に高かった。In Boso Peninsula of Chiba Prefecture, a large number of Pinus densiflora and P. thunbergii had been planted naturally or artificially, and a low rate of them survived the past heavy infestation of pine wilt disease caused by pine wood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus. P. densiflora and P. thunbergii of 40-80 years old in Tokyo Univ. Forest in Chiba were drilled on the trunks and inoculated with about 2,000 nematodes. The living trees in spite of the inoculation were repeated in the second year, and then in the following third year. The trees not killed in this repeated inoculation for three successive years were finally designated as being resistant. The graftings and the seedlings from these resistant mother trees, 31 trees of P. densiflora and 1 tree of P. thunbergii, were set for the same inoculation test, and these young trees were proved of high resistance. The graftings of these mother trees were planted in a seed orchard. By inoculation tests with several races of B. xylopilus, the seedlings bred from the orchard proved of the same strong resistance as those of Pinus taeda which was hardly killed in field by pine wilt disease

Development and Evaluation of a Robust Sandwich Immunoassay System Detecting Serum WFA-Reactive IgA1 for Diagnosis of IgA Nephropathy

Aberrant glycosylation of IgA1 is involved in the development of IgA nephropathy (IgAN). There are many reports of IgAN markers focusing on the glycoform of IgA1. None have been clinically applied as a routine test. In this study, we established an automated sandwich immunoassay system for detecting aberrant glycosylated IgA1, using Wisteria floribunda agglutinin (WFA) and anti-IgA1 monoclonal antibody. The diagnostic performance as an IgAN marker was evaluated. The usefulness of WFA for immunoassays was investigated by lectin microarray. A reliable standard for quantitative immunoassay measurements was designed by modifying a purified IgA1 substrate. A validation study using multiple serum specimens was performed using the established WFA-antibody sandwich automated immunoassay. Lectin microarray results showed that WFA specifically recognized N-glycans of agglutinated IgA1 in IgAN patients. The constructed IgA1 standard exhibited a wide dynamic range and high reactivity. In the validation study, serum WFA-reactive IgA1 (WFA+-IgA1) differed significantly between healthy control subjects and IgAN patients. The findings indicate that WFA is a suitable lectin that specifically targets abnormal agglutinated IgA1 in serum. We also describe an automated immunoassay system for detecting WFA+-IgA1, focusing on N-glycans

Cat and Dog Ownership in Early Life and Infant Development : A Prospective Birth Cohort Study of Japan Environment and Children's Study

Contact with companion animals has been suggested to have important roles in enhancing child development. However, studies focused on child development and pet ownership at a very early age are limited. The purpose of the current study was to investigate child development in relation to pet ownership at an early age in a nationwide prospective birth cohort study: the Japan Environment and Children's Study. Associations between cat and dog ownership at six months and infant development at 12 months of age were examined in this study. Infant development was assessed using the Ages & Stages Questionnaires(TM) (ASQ-3) at 12 months. Among participants of (Japan Environment and Children's Study) JECS, those with available data of cat and dog ownership at six months and data for the ASQ-3 at 12 months were included (n = 78,868). Having dogs showed higher percentages of pass in all five domains measured by ASQ-3 (communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem-solving, and personal-social) compared to those who did not have dogs. Significantly decreased odds ratios (ORs) of developmental delays were observed in association with having dogs in all fix domains (communication: OR = 0.73, gross motor: OR = 0.86, fine motor: OR = 0.84, problem-solving: OR = 0.90, personal-social: OR = 0.83). This study suggested that early life dog ownership may reduce the risks of child developmental delays

Urinary 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine levels and preterm births: a prospective cohort study from the Japan Environment and Children’s Study

Objectives To evaluate the association between urinary 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (U8-OHdG) level—a marker of oxidative stress—and the incidence of preterm births (PTBs).Design Prospective cohort study.Setting The Japan Environment and Children’s Study (JECS).Participants Data from 92 715 women with singleton pregnancies at and after 22 weeks of gestation who were enrolled in the JECS, a nationwide birth cohort study, between 2011 and 2014 were analysed. U8-OHdG levels were assessed once in the second/third trimester using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Participants were categorised into the following three or five groups: low (<1.95 ng/mg urinary creatinine (Cre)), moderate (1.95–2.94 ng/mg Cre) and high (≥2.95 ng/mg Cre) U8-OHdG groups, or groups with <1.87, 1.87–2.20, 2.21–2.57, 2.58–3.11 and ≥3.12 ng/mg Cre. For stratification, participants with representative causes for artificial PTB were excluded.Primary and secondary outcome measures Adjusted OR (aOR) for PTB before 37 and 34 weeks of gestation were calculated using a multivariable logistic regression model while adjusting for confounding factors; the moderate or lowest U8-OHdG group was used as the reference, respectively.Results The aORs for PTB before 37 weeks of gestation in the high U8-OHdG group were 1.13 (95% CI 1.05 to 1.22) and 1.13 (95% CI 1.04 to 1.23) after stratification. The aOR for PTB before 37 weeks in the fourth group was 0.90 (95% CI 0.81 to 0.99). After stratification, the aORs for PTB before 37 and 34 weeks in the fifth group were 1.15 (95% CI 1.03 to 1.29) and 1.46 (95% CI 1.08 to 1.97), respectively.Conclusions High U8-OHdG levels were associated with increased PTB incidence, especially in participants without representative causes for artificial PTB. Our results can help identify the mechanisms leading to PTB, considering the variable aetiologies of this condition; further validation is needed to clarify clinical impacts