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Common air pollutant linked to cognitive, behavioral impairment in developing brains

Prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons has been linked to cognitive and behavioral impairment in developing brains, according to data published in JAMA Psychiatry.

Previous research suggests that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are neurotoxins that induce inflammation, oxidative stress and vascular injury, the researchers wrote.

“This is the largest MRI study to date of how early life exposure to air pollutants, specifically PAH, affect the developing mind,” Bradley S. Peterson, MD, professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, said in a press release. “Our findings suggest that PAH are contributors to [attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder] and other behavioral problems due to the pollutants’ disruptive effects on early brain development.”

The imaging study was carried out in a representative community-based cohort of 40 minority urban youth born to Latina or African American women, enrolled from February 1998 to March 2006.

Data revealed a dose-response relationship between increased prenatal exposure to PAH and reductions in white matter surface by age 5 years.

The researchers reported significant associations between higher prenatal PAH exposure and reduced processing speed during intelligence testing.

These findings suggest that PAH air pollutants may be contributors to slower processing speed, ADHD symptoms, and externalizing problems in urban youth, according to the researchers.

“Our findings raise important concerns about the effects of air pollutants on brain development in children, and the consequences of those brain effects on cognition and behavior,” Peterson said in the release. “If confirmed, our findings have important public health implications, given the ubiquity of PAH in air pollutants in the general population.”– by Samantha Costa

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.