Abstract Background Essential elements, such as calcium (Ca), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn) are critical for fetal development, while metals or metalloids, such as arsenic (As), antimony (Sb), boron (B), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), lead (Pb), uranium (U), and vanadium (V) are potentially toxic metals (PTM) that interfere with vital processes. There is a need for biomonitoring essential and toxic metals during the uterine stage, and hair metal content may be a good biomarker. Objective This study aimed to quantify the concentrations of 11 elements, including both essential and PTM, in hair samples of 96 newborn-mother pairs from an urban polluted area to assess fetal metal transfer. Methods Essential elements and PTM were quantified by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) in hair samples. Relationships between maternal and child hair metal concentrations were examined using Spearman’s rank correlation analysis, adjusting for potential confounding variables. Results The mothers’ hair PTM concentrations ranged from 8.0 ng/g to 7.0 µg/g in the following order: Cd <As <Sb<U <Hg<V<Pb <B, while in newborns’ hair ranged from 1.0 ng/g to 10.0 µg/g as follows: U <Cd <As <V <Sb <Hg <Pb <B. Most PTM concentrations were higher in the mothers except for B and Sb. Significant positive correlations between the mothers’ and newborns’ hair concentrations of Hg (0.7365), As (0.6987), B (0.4980), Zn (0.3786), Pb (0.3012), U (0.2691), and Ca (0.2467) were observed. In addition, the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) performed in the mother-newborn pairs to identify possible common sources of exposure showed four principal components, which were not always similar in both groups. Significance These results suggest that PTM are transferred to the fetus, although not all showed similar relationships with their mothers' concentrations, and that hair is a reliable biomarker for assessing prenatal metal exposure. Impact Statement The importance of knowing the exposure to PTM during the intrauterine stage is critical to prevent adverse effects in newborns and in childhood, and lies in having good biomarkers of the exposure. Hair metal concentrations in newborns could be a valuable biomarker for prenatal exposure.
Ortiz-Robles et al. (Sat,) studied this question.