Urinary Phthalate Metabolite Associations with Biomarkers of Inflammation and Oxidative Stress Across Pregnancy in Puerto Rico

Phthalate exposure during pregnancy has been linked to adverse birth outcomes such as preterm birth, and inflammation and oxidative stress may mediate these relationships. In a prospective cohort study of pregnant women recruited early in gestation in Northern Puerto Rico, we investigated the associations between urinary phthalate metabolites and biomarkers of inflammation, including C-reactive protein, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α, and oxidative stress, including 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (OHdG) and 8-isoprostane. Inflammation biomarkers were measured in plasma twice during pregnancy (N = 215 measurements, N = 120 subjects), and oxidative stress biomarkers in urine were measured three times (N = 148 measurements, N = 54 subjects) per woman. In adjusted linear mixed models, metabolites of di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) were associated with increased IL-6 and IL-10 but relationships were generally not statistically significant. All phthalates were associated with increases in oxidative stress markers. Relationships with OHdG were significant for DEHP metabolites as well as mono-n-butyl phthalate (MBP) and monoiso-butyl phthalate (MiBP). For 8-isoprostane, associations with nearly all phthalates were statistically significant and the largest effect estimates were observed for MBP and MiBP (49–50% increase in 8-isoprostane with an interquartile range increase in metabolite concentration). These relationships suggest a possible mechanism for phthalate action that may be relevant to a number of adverse health outcomes.