Agent Orange: 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin in breast milk increases autistic traits of 3-year-old children in Vietnam : Molecular Psychiatry

Dioxin levels in the breast milk of mothers residing near a contaminated former airbase in Vietnam remain much higher than in unsprayed areas, suggesting high perinatal dioxin exposure for their infants. The present study investigated the association of perinatal dioxin exposure with autistic traits in 153 3-year-old children living in a contaminated area in Vietnam. The children were followed up from birth using the neurodevelopmental battery Bayley-III. The high-2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD, (a contaminant of agent orange)) exposed groups (3.5 pg per g fat) showed significantly higher Autism Spectrum Rating Scale (ASRS) scores for both boys and girls than the mild-TCDD exposed groups, without differences in neurodevelopmental scores. In contrast, the high total dioxin-exposed group, indicated by polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/furans (PCDDs/Fs)—the toxic equivalents (TEQ) levels17.9 pg-TEQ per g fat, had significantly lower neurodevelopmental scores than the mild-exposed group in boys, but there was no difference in the ASRS scores. The present study demonstrates a specific impact of perinatal TCDD on autistic traits in childhood, which is different from the neurotoxicity of total dioxins (PCDDs/Fs).

Dioxin causes disease and reproductive problems across generations

Michael Skinner and members of his lab say dioxin administered to pregnant rats resulted in a variety of reproductive problems and disease in subsequent generations. The first generation of rats had prostate disease, polycystic ovarian disease and fewer ovarian follicles, the structures that contain eggs. To the surprise of Skinner and his colleagues, the third generation had even more dramatic incidences of ovarian disease and, in males, kidney disease.

Read more at: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-dioxin-disease-reproductive-problems.html#jCp

Prenatal damage from dioxin shown to involve microRNAs

ScienceDaily (Sep. 17, 2012) — Research carried out at the University of South Carolina has identified novel mechanisms through which dioxin, a well-known environmental contaminant, can alter physiological functions, according to a study published online in the journal PLOS ONE.