Pesticide Exposures and Risk of Preterm Birth

描述(申请人提供)：早产是指在怀孕37周前分娩。全世界每年约有1500万名婴儿早产，全球早产儿的患病率接近10%。美国早产的患病率约为13%，在美国几十年来一直在上升。自然早产的风险因素在很大程度上仍然是个谜。一系列环境暴露已被评估为早产的潜在风险因素，包括杀虫剂。美国每年的农药使用支出超过20亿美元，涉及1亿磅化学物质在环境中的应用。这些化合物中有许多是生殖毒物。然而，还没有大规模的研究来调查孕期接触杀虫剂是否会影响早产。这一重要的公共卫生假说一直在研究之中，可能是因为接触数据有限，加上缺乏关于早产的良好流行病学数据。我们已经确定了弥补这种缺乏信息的必要因素。在这里，我们提出了有史以来最大和最严格的基于人群的流行病学研究，目标是广泛的农药化合物对早产的影响。我们提出以下目标：1)确定怀孕期间接触特定农药是否与100,000名妇女自发早产婴儿/胎儿有关；2)确定怀孕期间暴露于生物功能组(例如内分泌干扰物或发育毒物)和物理化学组(例如氨基甲酸酯、卤代烃和砷)是否与&gt；100,000名妇女自发早产婴儿/胎儿有关。利用现有的数据源，我们提出了一个前所未有的、有效的机会来缩小这一知识鸿沟。这项人口规模的研究将在加利福尼亚州圣华金河谷进行，该地区被称为“世界粮食篮子”，并被称为“世界上最高产的农业区”。圣华金河谷是一个广泛使用杀虫剂的地区，也是一个社会经济地位和种族/族裔背景各异的地区。我们的团队已经证明了成功实施这一项目的能力

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Preterm birth involves deliveries before 37 weeks gestation. Approximately 15 million babies are born preterm every year in the world with a global prevalence approximating 10%. Prevalence of preterm birth in the US is approximately 13% and has increased in the US for decades. Risk factors of spontaneous preterm birth remain largely mysterious. An array of environmental exposures has been evaluated as potential risk factors for preterm birth including pesticides. Pesticide use in the US represents more than $2 billion/year in expenditures and involves the application of >100 million pounds of chemicals in the environment. Many of these chemical compounds are reproductive toxicants. However, large-scale studies have not been done to investigate whether gestational pesticide exposures influence preterm birth. This important public health hypothesis has been under studied likely owing to the limited availability of exposure data coupled with the lack of good epidemiologic data on preterm births. We have identified the necessary elements to remedy this lack of information. Here we propose the largest and most rigorous population-based epidemiologic study ever conducted that targets a breadth of pesticide compounds for their influence on preterm birth. We propose the following aims: 1) To determine whether exposures to specific pesticides during pregnancy are associated with >100,000 women spontaneously delivering infants/fetuses prematurely and 2) To determine whether exposures to biologically-functional groupings (e.g., endocrine disruptors or developmental toxicants) and physiochemical groupings (e.g., carbamates, halogenated hydrocarbons, and arsenicals) of pesticides during pregnancy are associated with >100,000 women spontaneously delivering infants/fetuses prematurely. Using existing data sources, we are proposing an unprecedented and efficient opportunity to close this knowledge gap. This population-scale study will be conducted in the California San Joaquin Valley - an area that is referred to as the "food basket of the world" and as "the most productive agricultural region in the world." The San Joaquin Valley is an area with demonstrated extensive pesticide use and an area diverse in socioeconomic status and race/ethnic background. Our group has demonstrated capability to successfully carry out this project