Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39733956›Full record

ArticleChemosphere2025

Associations of cord blood concentrations of perfluoroalkyl substances with autistic traits in Singaporean children: The growing up in Singapore towards healthy outcomes study.

Michael Mascari, Nathan Cohen, Meizhen Yao, Jonathan Huang, Jamil Lane, Katherine W Reeves, Raji Balasubramanian, Zhenhua Liu, Nasser Laouali, Lourdes Mary Daniel and 6 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Chemosphere, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

16 authors.

Michael MascariDepartment of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 715 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA. Electronic address: mtmascari@gmail.com.
Nathan CohenDepartment of Environmental Medicine and Climate Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1057, New York, NY, 10029, USA. Electronic address: nathan.cohen@mssm.edu.
Meizhen YaoDepartment of Environmental Medicine and Climate Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1057, New York, NY, 10029, USA. Electronic address: meizhen.yao@mssm.edu.
Jonathan HuangThompson School of Social Work and Public Health, Office of Public Health Studies, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2430 Campus Road, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA. Electronic address: huangjy@hawaii.edu.
Jamil LaneDepartment of Environmental Medicine and Climate Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1057, New York, NY, 10029, USA. Electronic address: jamil.lane@mssm.edu.
Katherine W ReevesDepartment of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 715 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA. Electronic address: kwreeves@umass.edu.
Raji BalasubramanianDepartment of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 715 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA. Electronic address: rbalasub@schoolph.umass.edu.
Zhenhua LiuDepartment of Nutrition, School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 715 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA. Electronic address: zliu@nutrition.umass.edu.
Nasser LaoualiDepartment of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 715 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA. Electronic address: alaoualimaha@umass.edu.
Lourdes Mary DanielDepartment of Child Development, KK Women's and Children's Hospital, 100 Bukit Timah Road, Singapore, 229899. Electronic address: mary.daniel@singhealth.com.sg.
Chia-Yang ChenInstitute of Food Safety and Health, College of Public Health, National Taiwan University, No. 17, Xuzhou Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, 100, Taiwan. Electronic address: dbms@ntu.edu.tw.
Chong Yap SengDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 10 Medical Drive, Singapore, 117597. Electronic address: obgcys@nus.edu.sg.
Chan Shiao-YngDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 10 Medical Drive, Singapore, 117597; Institute for Human Development and Potential (IHDP), Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A∗STAR), 1, #20-10 Fusionopolis Wy, Connexis, North Tower, 138632, Singapore. Electronic address: obgchan@nus.edu.sg.
Michelle Z L KeeInstitute for Human Development and Potential (IHDP), Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A∗STAR), 1, #20-10 Fusionopolis Wy, Connexis, North Tower, 138632, Singapore; Brain-Body Initiative, Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A∗STAR), 1, #20-10 Fusionopolis Wy, Connexis, North Tower, 138632, Singapore. Electronic address: michelle_kee@sics.a-star.edu.sg.
Damaskini ValviDepartment of Environmental Medicine and Climate Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1057, New York, NY, 10029, USA. Electronic address: dania.valvi@mssm.edu.
Youssef OulhoteDepartment of Environmental Medicine and Climate Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1057, New York, NY, 10029, USA. Electronic address: youssef.oulhote@mssm.edu.

Funding

The Mount Sinai Transdisciplinary Center on Early Environmental ExposuresP30ES023515 · NIEHS · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · PI Chris Gennings · 2014 to 2026
$21.3M
Research Training Program in Pediatric ExposomicsT32HD049311 · NICHD · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · PI KECIA Nicole CARROLL, Robert O Wright · 2007 to 2026
$7.4M
Perfluoroalkyl substances and incident type 2 diabetes in a US population: A metabolome-genome investigationR01ES033688 · NIEHS · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · PI Damaskini Valvi · 2022 to 2026
$3.2M
The interplay of early life exposure to environmental pollutants and folate system in the etiology of autistic behaviorsR01ES032552 · NIEHS · UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST · PI Youssef Oulhote · 2022 to 2026
$3.1M
Perfluoroalkyl substances and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in children: Leveraging magnetic resonance imaging to unravel potential mechanisms and exposure mixture effectsR21ES035148 · NIEHS · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · PI OULHOTE, YOUSSEF, VALVI, DAMASKINI · 2023 to 2023
$479k
NICHD NIH HHS T32 HD049311NIEHS NIH HHS P30 ES023515NIEHS NIH HHS R01 ES032552NIEHS NIH HHS R01 ES033688NIEHS NIH HHS R21 ES035148
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAutism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social deficits and repetitive behaviors. Environmental pollutants may contribute to the etiology of ASD, but studies of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have shown conflicting results.

objectivesWe assessed associations between cord blood concentrations of PFAS with autistic traits at age seven years in a Singaporean birth cohort.

methodsWe measured cord blood concentrations of eight PFAS in a sample of 430 mother-child pairs from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) cohort. We assessed autistic traits using the Social Responsiveness Scale Second Edition (SRS-2) and its sub-scores, in which higher scores indicate more autistic traits. We estimated covariate-adjusted associations between the PFAS and SRS-2 scores using Bayesian weighted quantile sum (BWQS) regression models for the PFAS mixtures and multivariable regressions for single PFAS. We additionally evaluated effect modification by biological sex.

resultsWe observed a positive association between the PFAS mixture and SRS-2 cognition sub-scores (β per SD increase = 1.25 points, 95% CI -0.03, 2.40). Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) was the strongest contributor to the mixture effect. In single PFAS models, exposure to PFNA was associated with a higher SRS-2 total score (β = 0.93 points, 95% CI 0.29, 1.58), cognition sub-score (β = 1.26 points, 95% CI 0.55, 1.97), communication sub-score (β = 0.88 points, 95% CI 0.20, 1.56), and restrictive and repetitive behaviors sub-score (β = 0.93 points, 95% CI 0.23, 1.63). We also observed evidence of effect modification by sex for perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnDA) for the total score (p-effect modification [EM] = 0.03), cognition sub-score (p-EM = 0.03), and communication sub-score (p-EM = 0.04), with negative associations seen in females and null associations in males. DISCUSSION: Cord blood PFAS concentrations were positively associated with autistic traits measured by SRS-2.

Indexed as

Autism Spectrum DisorderAutistic DisorderEnvironmental PollutantsFetal BloodFluorocarbonsChildEnvironmental ExposureFemaleHumansMalePregnancySingaporeEnvironmental PollutantsFluorocarbonsAutismPerfluoroalkyl substancesSingaporeSocial responsiveness scale second edition

Identifiers

PMID39733956
PMCPMC11758275

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